


Sight and Sound

by Kgfinkel



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Friendship, Gen, Male-Female Friendship, Songfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-08
Updated: 2020-11-08
Packaged: 2021-03-08 21:13:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 55,120
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27453292
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kgfinkel/pseuds/Kgfinkel
Summary: Luna Lovegood is a natural Magesight who also has the ability to hear the Songs that resonate from a person's String of magic. Join her as she enters Hogwarts with a phoenix familiar and a goal to bring art and music to the school as well as make a name for herself as the creator of a new version of the Chocolate Frog Cards. AU, LL/NL, HP/HG, SEQUEL TO THE POTIONEER'S ASSISTANT.
Relationships: Neville Longbottom/Luna Lovegood
Comments: 1
Kudos: 39





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my second story (still a WIP.) I plan on coming back once I finish the rest of the stories in my queue list. As with The Potioneer's Assistant, this story has my earlier writing style. Additionally, it was originally written for the FFN site so I couldn't tag the songs that are listed within but you can easily find them on YouTube. Finally, I know that a lot of the songs were created later than the story timeline but Luna can See magic and Hear music; so let's just suspend disbelief for the duration, eh?

**PROLOGUE**

_**19 June 1992** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**It's been a little over a year since the passing of my mother and I dearly miss her! It makes me so sad that I will never hear her voice or feel her arms wrapped around me as she gives out one of her best hugs.** _

_**Interesting thing happened though while I was visiting her at her gravesite…** _

* * *

It was mid June when Fawkes flashed onto the scene in Ottery St. Catchpole; a sleepy little village on the outskirts of Devon. He was in search of a new human to be his bonded familiar. _It's funny how the humans think_ we're _the familiars when it reality it's the other way around._ Through the Strings of magic, Fawkes detected someone who matched his criteria for someone to bond with. He determined it was a young female with as close to as a pure heart and soul that anyone could ever ask for.

He landed upon a granite stone protruding up from the ground and briefly observed that the girl was crying.

_'I sense great sadness within you, young one. Why the tears?'_

The girl gasped at the sudden intrusion to her misery. She looked up sharply and spotted Fawkes perched on her mother's gravestone, "My mother died recently from an experiment that went wrong," the girl quietly replied, "I miss her greatly. I wish she would come back."

_'I'm sorry to hear that, young one. It is always sad to lose a cherished family member. Do you recognize what I am?'_

"Yes, you're a phoenix. Are you here to give me a message from my mother?" she said hopefully with a snuffle of last tears.

' _No, unfortunately not young one; that is not what phoenixes are known for. What we are known for is guiding those of the purest heart, minds and soul to their fullest potential. If you would allow me, I'd like to bond with you and help you on that path?'_

"I think I would like that. You can help me find all the wondrous creatures that haven't been discovered yet. What's your name?" she pondered out loud.

' _My name used to be Fawkes however I've had many names over the millennia. What name would you like to give me?'_

"That name is fine with me. Oh, where are my manners? My name is Luna Lovegood."

' _Hello, Luna Lovegood. I can sense that you love adventure and seeking out undiscovered creatures. Would you tell me about them?'_

"Well let's see," Luna began with a final sniff as she wiped her red-rimmed eyes, "there's the Wrackspurt which feeds on conscious thought. They fly into your ears and make your brain turn all fuzzy. There's the Nargle, which are mischievous little creatures that like to steal your belongings. There's the Crumple-horned Snorkack, which is a very elusive and shy creature. No one is truly sure as to what it looks like or what its purpose is. It's rumored to be quite sweet and lovable and…"

Fawkes listened quietly as Luna waxed on about the mystical creatures that she and her father searched for during the summer months. He didn't have a clue as to the location of any of these creatures but he could understand the thrill and love that Luna shared with her father despite having never finding them. When he asked her about that, she replied it wasn't so much the actual discovery of the creature rather the joy of the companionship and journey with someone she loved.

' _It is very brave and courageous of you to cast aside any derision from others in your quest to find the elusive and mythological, Luna. When you get to Hogwarts, I would not be surprised if you were sorted into Gryffindor because of that courage.'_

"Really? I have a friend who lives on the other side of the valley that would swear that I'm destined for Ravenclaw because of how smart I am," Luna commented.

' _It's also possible but remember, Ravenclaw students pride themselves on learning from what's in a book or a scroll. They have little patience for those who prefer to learn in an environment outside of the classroom.'_

"That's not very smart to limit yourself to what's already published," she replied.

' _A wise person once said,_ 'Logic and Magic cannot exist in the same space. To have one, you must give up the other.' _Do you understand?'_

"Mm-hmm. It means that those Ravenclaws must have an infestation of Wrackspurts in their dorms."

Fawkes paused then shook his head in bemused exasperation. He peered within her mind to see if she truly did understand or was merely humoring him. Her mindscape was chaotic to say the least but he could sense that she did understand, just in a very convoluted way.

"You know, it's rather rude to enter a person's mind without asking permission Fawkes," Luna dryly rebuked.

Fawkes was surprised! He didn't even realize that she'd detected his intrusion!

' _My apologies young one, I was merely curious to know how your mind worked. I meant no harm. You are correct though; I should've asked you for permission. Is your mind always that…chaotic?'_

"Chaotic? No, it just is this way. I see things others miss or ignore," she said, "I was told that I'm a natural Magesight. I can also Hear the Songs from the Strings of magic that connect people to the world."

Fawkes was intrigued, _'What sort of Songs? What do you hear when you look at me?'_

"I don't know the name of it. It's a fast paced sort of song that…well, would fit perfectly if you were racing along a canyon path on a fast broom."

' _Interesting, well while I'm your familiar, why don't I help you find out the names of these Songs you speak of? I know that in the muggle world, there are places to listen to all sorts of music. Perhaps you will find the names of these Songs there?'_

"I'd appreciate that. Could we go now?"

* * *

So Fawkes flamed the two of them out of the field and into the Royal Conservatory in London. They were met by a young man in his thirties, Mr. Nicolas Tremmler.

"Good morning, young lady. Fawkes? What brings you by?"

' _I bring you Miss Luna Lovegood. She's a natural Magesight and apparently can hear the Songs that are played by an individual's String of magic. I thought that the two of you might be able to put the names of the Songs she hears,'_ answered Fawkes.

"Fascinating! Well, Miss Lovegood. Do you have any questions before we begin?"

"You are a wizard? I can hear the String attached to you. It's a nice song."

"I am a wizard, muggleborn to be exact. I left the magical world because there really wasn't a place for my sort of musical talents," replied Nicolas.

"What sort of talents would that be?" asked Luna.

"I play the trombone, it's a brass wind instrument," he responded, "So let's start simple. Could you hum the notes that you hear when you look at Fawkes?"

Luna hummed the opening bars to the Song and Nicolas smiled.

"Fitting, very fitting that Fawkes would have the group AC/DC's 'Thunderstruck.' It's a genre known as 'Rock and Roll' and very appropriate. What Song do you hear when you look at my String?"

Luna Listened for a moment and hummed the opening bars.

"Ah, that's fun. The Andrew Sister's 'Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy.' Written and played during the nineteen forties during the Second World War."

* * *

Luna spent the afternoon with Nicolas Tremmler learning how to identify the different genres of music as well as the names of some of the more popular Songs. There were sad Songs and happy Songs but she was diligent and learned a lot.

That evening while everyone else was asleep, Fawkes was awake and trying to comprehend what he had learned while inside Luna's mindscape. He knew that most people had their world neat and organized while Luna's seemed to follow a more…organic path. He had once come across a young Muggleborn who had told him about a story about a young girl who fell down a rabbit's hole into another world where clocks flew, animals dressed in Victorian Era clothing, flowers honked and other wondrous things.

It was that description that seemed to fit Luna's mind, Wonderland. Another thing he confirmed was that Luna _was_ capable of Seeing and Hearing Magic in its true form. Luminous Strings that connected everyone and everything together were visible to the young girl's eyes. This led to her being perceived by others as 'flighty,' 'dreamy,' 'loony.' It angered him a little that the youngest son of the family to whom Luna's best friend belonged to would tease her mercilessly about her supposed 'loony' ways. He vowed that when she arrived to the school, he would do all he could to disabuse the redheaded menace and anyone else of that notion.

The Songs she was able to Hear were breathtaking and amusing. His own Song was particularly moving. Nicolas had played a recording of the muggle song and Fawkes had to agree that it fit his style of flight perfectly. The Song for Nicolas was a jazzy and quick tempo that got everyone tapping his or her foot in time with the music.

* * *

_**20 June 1992** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**I learned so much from Mr. Tremmler yesterday! There are so many Songs! I learned that there are groupings, or as they're called 'genres' for just about any kind of music one would care to learn about. For example, Mr. Tremmler's Song is called 'Swing; boogie-woogie; traditional pop; jazz.'** _

_**I discovered that the phoenix that claimed me as his familiar is called Fawkes. He has a Song. His genre is called, 'Hard Rock; Blues Rock; Rock and Roll.'** _

_**My own Song is a genre called, 'Alternative Rock; Power Pop; Pop Punk; Emo.'** _

_**I think today I'm going to finish up the East Wall. I'm just about done; I just want to add that swing on the tree.** _

* * *

The next morning, Fawkes rode Luna's shoulder down to the kitchen where she began preparing the morning meal for her and her father, Xenophilius. When he arrived and sat down, Xeno blinked owlishly at Fawkes.

"Um Luna, dear? Why is there a phoenix sitting here in our kitchen?"

"Oh Daddy, this is Fawkes. I'm his new familiar," she calmly replied.

"You're _his?_ I thought it was the other way around?"

"That doesn't seem to be true as it is they who make the first approach as to whether or not a familiar is possible. Fawkes here has told me that people just aren't observant enough until the animal makes contact first." Luna observed her father's String and determined that the Song playing was something called 'eclectic Jazz.' It was a jumble of seemingly random sounds that just flowed together properly.

Xeno nodded thoughtfully, his mind not really processing what his daughter explained but went along with it anyway. He picked up the cup of morning tea that Luna placed in front of him and took a small sip while thinking of what was needed to be accomplished today.

"Any plans for what you wanted to do today, poppet?" he inquired of Luna.

"Mm-hmm, I was thinking of getting out my paints and finishing up the East Wall. After that, I was planning on heading out to the town and seeing if my traps for the Hornswallow Flies have netted any results."

"Just make sure that you're going to be home before sundown, sweetie."

"I promise Daddy."

* * *

Luna took Fawkes over to the East Wall after breakfast and showed him her latest mural. Even unfinished, he could see that it was shaping up to be a masterpiece. It showed a pastoral scene complete with cows grazing in a field, trees that appeared to be swaying in a non-existent gentle breeze. If he closed his eyes, he could almost smell the crisp air and scents of the plants.

_'You are truly talented, Luna. How long have you been painting like this?'_

"Since I was five years old. I started with the wall just outside the kitchen and just expanded from there."

_'Have you ever been to the art galleries in the muggle world?'_

Luna swung her rather protuberant eyes over to Fawkes and tilted her head questioningly, "The muggles have places where art is displayed for anyone? I had no idea."

' _Yes, some of the greatest collections can be found in museums and art galleries in most of the major cities around the world. If you'd like, I can take you there?'_

"I'll have to think about it. Today is too busy for me."

Luna began to paint and hum at the same time. The tune she was humming seemed awfully familiar to Fawkes. He listened to her for a while before asking her what the names were.

"I have no idea though the one I'm currently listening to sounds a lot like a similar version of the 'Rock and Roll' that Mr. Tremmler told me about. It's catchy and sounds nice."

* * *

_**21 June 1992** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**Today was my field trip with Fawkes to the London Museum of Art! Oh Merlin, was it exciting! There were all sorts of sculptures and paintings by some very talented artists. It was a shame that the portraits were made by muggles, none of them moved. I nearly got in trouble trying to prod one to shift position…oops.** _

_**I think next time, I ought to bring my camera so I can have proof that these places exist and I can also show Ginny…** _

* * *

Luna was taken by Fawkes down to the London Museum of Art where she spent the entire time gazing in rapturous delight at all of the different paintings and sculptures. Rembrandts, Degas, Michelangelo, Picasso… all of their works lined the walls and the sculptures stood on pedestals, each one more wondrous to the mind of the ten-year old girl. Details such as lighting angles, colors, brush strokes, the scenes and portraits themselves filled her eyes and sparked her imagination.

She brought her notebook and a pen to document her discoveries. One thing she wrote down that she knew that no one would believe her was that the muggle paintings didn't move! She nearly got in trouble with a security guard when she had reached out and tried to touch one of the portraits trying to 'wake it up.' Fortunately the guard accepted her apology and explanation that the painting was so life like, she thought that the woman was trying to reach out for her. The guard just chuckled, patted her on the shoulder and walked away.

While losing herself in a Rembrandt, she was also listening to the Songs that played around her. She watched as the patrons moved around her and marveled at the wide range of Songs from silly children's tunes to sad, mournful dirges.

_'Quite the impressive collection is it not, Luna?'_

"Oh, yes. It's amazing that there are so many Songs and Strings! The artwork is just simply astounding! I had no idea any of this was possible, there's nothing like it back home. The muggles are much more varied than the magical world. I'm almost overwhelmed by the variety. Maybe one day I could bring my paintings down and display them?"

"Excuse me, miss? Who are you speaking to?" asked a nearby security guard.

Luna turned her silvery eyes up to his face and gave a bright smile, "I was talking to my familiar. Can you not see him? He's sitting on the bench right next to me," the guard shook his head no and gave her a worried look, "That's a shame, he's quite a beautiful phoenix."

The security guard was getting worried now. A young girl, wandering around an art gallery in such strange clothing? She seemed lost and yet… not. But with the explanation that she was here with a… phoenix? Now there was enough alarm bells ringing in his mind that he thought she might have wandered away from one of those groups that took in abused children around town.

"Miss? I'm going to call for someone to escort you back to your group. Do you remember what your group leader looked like?"

Luna just gave an enigmatic smile, "I'm not crazy. I merely can see things that others miss. It's almost _magical_ … I shall be fine but if it's that worrying for you then I shall leave. Fawkes?"

Just then there was a rush of 'Thunderstruck,' a burst of flame and Luna vanished from the guard's astonished sight.

* * *

_**11 July 1992** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**Today I got to see the beauty and grandeur of the Louvre in Paris! I took my camera, paints, pens and sketchpad so I could make renderings of whatever I saw. I got to see this famous painting made by Leonardo da Vinci, 'The Mona Lisa.' Very somber and rather sad looking expression on the girl and the overall coloring of the background is rather depressing.** _

_**While I was taking a lunch break, I sketched out the Eiffel Tower from my location. A passerby noticed and complimented me on my talent. That felt nice…** _

_**When Fawkes said he was going to take me to Paris, I wondered if the Songs of French people were different to those in Britain. It turns out that is not the case; I thought about it and I've determined that the Songs I hear are my interpretations. I spoke with a couple of other people and asked them the same questions I came up with for myself and they all had different selections of songs. Interesting, I'll need to study that in depth later…** _

* * *

The months leading up to the end of August flew by in Luna's opinion. She and Fawkes flame-traveled around the world, visiting art museums and free concerts in the various parks. At the end of each trip, she dutifully pulled out her journal and recorded each of her observations and experiences. She described the Strings that she saw and who they connected to, the Songs that she heard and spoke with everyone that interested her. She communicated with just about everyone in every level of society. She wrote down or sketched out the paintings and sculptures that caught her eye and her imagination for her own works.

Mr. Tremmler introduced her to muggle record shops and with the help of the Gringott's Goblins, converted some Galleons into British Pounds then bought a nice non-electric record player. The sales clerk had asked why she didn't want one that plugged into a wall and she calmly explained that the house that she lived in didn't have electricity. When pressed further, she said that the small farming community that she lived in wanted to remain as close to nature as possible and that only the leader of the town had a connection for emergency use only. The clerk had a puzzled look on her face but shrugged it off.

After the purchase of the player, she wandered around the tables that held the record collections. Pulling random records off the shelves, she headed to the booth that offered her a chance to hear the songs before purchasing the records. Luna ended up spending nearly all of her money in just that one store alone. The calm, serene look on her face clashed with the excited, nearly wild glistening in her eyes. She couldn't wait to share this with her father and Ginny!

* * *

_**23 August 1992** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**Today I think I'll go visit Ginny Weasley. It's been so long since I've seen her and I want to share my adventures with her. I'll be taking my 'Adventure Journal' with all of my pictures. I hope she likes it!** _

_**Fawkes said that he will be busy for the rest of the month and a little into September with something he calls, 'Nest Duties.' I think he's some kind of phoenix leader amongst his species…** _

* * *

The Sunday before the last week of August was upon her and she decided to go visit her friend Ginny Weasley. When she got to the Weasley home, The Burrow, she spotted her redheaded friend digging in the bushes trying to clear out the usual infestation of garden gnomes.

"Hello Ginny," Luna dreamily called out as she caught the young girl's Song, "Beautiful morning isn't it?"

Ginny huffed, "It would be if I didn't have to clear out these gnomes as a punishment."

Luna tilted her head puzzled, "Why did you get in trouble?"

"Mum caught me hitting Ronald after the twit pushed me into a wall as he was coming down the stairs," Ginny groused.

"Mmm, yes that would be a problem. Would you like some help?"

"Please? While we do this you can tell me where you've been for the past couple of weeks."

So the two young girls worked on clearing out the gnomes and discussed Luna's summer adventure. Ginny was shocked that Luna had become the familiar to Fawkes and rather jealous of the fun things that the two of them got to see and experience.

"Wish I could've gone with you, Luna. Those galleries and concerts sounded fun. Nothing exciting happens here unless you can get amused watching the chickens chase each other around," she grumped.

Luna pulled her adventure journal out of her pocket and shared with her best friend. Unfortunately, Ginny became upset. When asked why, the redhead just shrugged her shoulders and glared at the house for a moment. In order to change the mood of the conversation, Luna asked her which House Ginny hoped to get into.

"Ha! Luna, you know that Weasleys always go into Gryffindor."

Luna shrugged briefly, "There's no reason that you _have_ to. I know that you're smart enough to go wherever you want. I'm hoping for Gryffindor myself."

"Why? I've always pegged you for Ravenclaw."

"Well, Fawkes and I discussed this as well and Ravenclaws tend to view the world through books alone and dislike anyone who tries to learn in a…'unconventional manner.' I want to be an explorer and locate the animals that my father has described in his magazine. That takes bravery and courage, hence Gryffindor."

The last weekend of August rolled around and Luna was preparing to head to Diagon Alley with the Weasley family to get their school supplies. She flooed over and waited patiently while the whirlwind that is that family scurried all over the house to get ready to go shopping. The matriarch, Molly Weasley was bellowing like an enraged bull elephant trying to get her recalcitrant brood into some semblance of order. She was so loud that Luna couldn't even hear the woman's Song.

"Fred! George! Get down here already!"

The Weasley Twins came thundering down the stairs, "Keep your hair on. We're here. Oh, hi Luna."

"Bloody hell, why is Loony coming with us?" complained Ron, the youngest male Weasley and most annoying according to Ginny.

"RONALD BILIUS WEASLEY! How DARE you use that disgusting language in this house! Luna is our guest and we shall be escorting her to Diagon Alley to do her shopping. If you can't handle it, then you can just stay here!" bellowed Molly.

"Uh… um, sorry Luna," stammered Ron though when Molly turned her back, he stuck his tongue out at her and sneered at Luna.

"Ron," Fred quietly whispered, "I'm warning you now. If you try to pull any sort of this crap while in school, you'll be our first and only test subject."

"What are you on about?" Ron muttered.

"We overheard Ginny and Luna talking the last time she was here and it's their strong belief that Luna will be sorted into Gryffindor. I'm warning you, pull this crap on a fellow Lion and you won't like the consequences."

Finally, everyone had been queued up and went through the floo to the Leaky Cauldron.

When they exited, Luna said that she wanted to get her trunk first. Molly, on the other hand, tutted and said that it would be best for all of them to stay together.

"Mrs. Weasley, I promise you that I'll be safe. At the very least, I need to stop in at Gringott's and you know that the Goblins are trustworthy."

"Oh, Luna… Fine," said Molly with a heavy sigh and waved her on.

Luna skipped up the steps and spoke to the guards in their own language of Gob'lineskru, **"Greetings noble Guardians! May your time served be as boring and quiet as the thoughts running through the mind of the Minister of Magic."**

The Goblin guards gave mirthful grins and replied in English, "May your shopping experiences be as bountiful and thrilling as the Fountain of Guernak."

She was waved through and proceeded to the nearest teller. The Goblin Songs were unfamiliar to her. They were rough and guttural but they seemed to fit. She gave another proper greeting and requested a trip to her family vault. Once down, she collected a hundred Galleons and then nodded to the vault runner that she was done.

A couple of hours and several shops later, Luna entered Ollivander's wand shop. The Strings of magic were thick and strong here. She smiled at the whispers of Songs that were floating throughout the room.

"Good morning my dear."

Luna turned and smiled happily at Garrick Ollivander, the shop owner. He gave a knowing smirk; this girl was the only one who didn't jump whenever he made his entrance.

"You're here for your first wand, right?" She nodded.

"I'm right-handed and I do believe that my wand is on the third shelf on the right, upstairs in the guest room."

Garrick's eyebrows rose in surprise, "You can Hear it my dear?"

"Yes, its Song is quite harmonious, it matches my own."

Garrick trekked upstairs and returned with a wand box. He opened it up and pulled out a beautiful Rowan wood wand with a Unicorn tail hair core. She took it in hand and a rainbow of glittery sparks filled the air. Just then Fawkes flamed into the room with a joyous trill.

' _Quite a beautiful wand, Luna. I can feel the pure nature of the magic in this wand. It's power and purity matches your own. What Song do you Hear for yourself?'_

"I believe it's called 'An Island in the Sun' by the band named Weezer."

"A phoenix familiar Miss Lovegood?" queried a shocked Garrick, "and what song are you referring to?"

"Hm-mm. This is Fawkes; he used to be Albus Dumbledore's familiar until his actions became too dark for him. I've become his new familiar. I can Hear Songs that are tied to a person's String of magic."

"A person's Song? Fascinating, what do you hear when you look at me?"

"I'm not sure of the name but it's by a muggle classical musician called Beethoven."

"Impressive. Well… that'll be seven Galleons."

' _I must be getting back; I just wanted to be with you when you got your first wand. Special moment, that is…'_

"Thank you Fawkes."

Luna's final stop before meeting up with the Weasley's was Flourish and Blott's, the bookstore. She collected the prepackaged group of First Year books and was wandering through the stacks trying to decide between getting a book on Runes or one on Magical Crafts. She could see through the shelves at the latest public attraction that was taking place on the other side of the store. It was a blonde-haired man with a sparkling set of teeth promoting his latest set of books. Despite the notoriety of the man and the popularity of his works, Luna had no desire to go anywhere near the crowd, especially since his Song was a popular children's Song called, 'Enter the Gladiators' by Julius Fucik. It sounded quite silly.


	2. Chapter 2

_**1 September 1992** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**It's here! September first! Squeee! I'm so happy, excited and nervous all rolled up into one! I'm finally getting to go to Hogwarts! I think I'll get there early so I can get a good seat. I'm worried that the Weasleys will be making their usual mad dash at the last moment and that's not the way a first time traveler should make on their beginning of a new education.** _

_**I wonder if I'll get to meet Harry Potter? I've read a couple of articles he wrote and picked up my own Potioneer's Assistant. I'm impressed by the work that went into creating this. I can only hope that my own project does as well. I think I ought to start a new journal laying out my plans to create the creature version of the Chocolate Frog cards. What to call them though is a toughie… Oooh! How about a Chocolate Snorkack card?** _

* * *

September first finally arrived and Luna arrived at King's Cross; about an hour before the scheduled departure time. After stowing her trunk, she sat down on the bench and observed the Strings and listened to the approaching Songs. One in particular was interesting. She watched the entrance portal and spotted Harry Potter walking onto the platform with his girlfriend, Hermione Granger and Sirius Black… or was it Stubby Boardman?

She exited the carriage and waved him over.

"Hello Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Mr. Boardman."

"Hello? Who are you?" Harry asked politely.

"My name is Luna Lovegood. I would like it if you were both to join me."

Harry and Hermione glanced at each other. Sirius was perplexed at being called 'Mr. Boardman.'

"Miss Lovegood? Why did you refer to me as Mr. Boardman?" inquired Sirius.

"You are Stubby Boardman of the Hobgoblins? My father was quite distressed when you broke up the band," she replied as Sirius laughed.

"Sorry to tell you this but I'm not Stubby Boardman. I've seen him and while we do share _some_ similarities, we're not the same person."

"You're sure? That's a shame. My father was hoping you'd get the band back together and put out some new songs," pouted Luna while Harry and Hermione chuckled at Sirius' embarrassment.

Sirius gave his charges some well wishes and a bunch of hugs before leaving for his new job. Harry's eyes glistened as he finally got the treatment that he'd seen other children getting before setting off on a journey before he climbed on board with Hermione following behind. Once they were settled, Hermione turned to Luna and asked her why she sought them out.

"I saw your Strings and heard your Songs. I figured you'd need a quiet place to stay for the moment. Your fame was attracting the attention of the wrong people."

"Oh? What strings and songs?"

"I am capable of Seeing and Hearing magic. To me, magic looks like brightly colored strings and the Songs are what resonate from those strings. Everyone has them. For example, Harry's is a genre known as 'hip-hop, Reggaeton, Pop music' and the Song called 'Fireball' by the muggle songwriter 'Pitbull.' Yours covers two different genres. It is a sweet love song called, 'The Game of Love' performed by a duet named Santana and Michelle Branch. Miss Branch's genre is 'Pop music, Rock, pop rock, country, and acoustic music' while Mr. Santana's genre is 'Latin rock, blues rock, psychedelic rock, acid rock and Chicano rock.' I have their records with me as well as a record player."

Hermione was skeptical, "It sounds rather like Divination."

Luna just smiled mysteriously, "Before last year dragons, magic and witchcraft would've been considered fantastical, wouldn't you agree?"

Hermione tilted her head thoughtfully, "I guess so."

"You have a wonderful gift Luna. To be able to hear so many different types of music," mused Harry.

"Sometimes though at other times it can be a curse. Those people I mentioned earlier have a rough, angry song. It sounds like stones hitting sheet metal. It's the sort of thing I'd expect to Hear from Ronald Weasley."

"Ouch. That does sound terrible. I take it that you live near the Weasleys? Do you know what it is about me that they're after?" asked Harry.

"Your latest article. It has angered them and yes, I live on the other side of the valley that the Weasleys live."

Harry just rolled his eyes, "Twits. Okay, I'll contact Sirius and let him deal with it." With that he pulled out a mirror and called his godfather to let him know about the incident.

"You should also tell him that his Song is also quite… motivating."

Harry turned back, "What's his song?"

"AC/DC 'Back in Black.'"

Harry grinned; he knew that song, "Yup, that sounds like Sirius."

* * *

Once the train began its journey, Luna pulled out her record player and a set of headphones the salesclerk had recommended so as to not disturb others around her. One of the things that Luna had her father do when she got home was to enchant the player to be more stable while traveling over rough roads and not skip tracks. Hermione was watching with a curious mien on her face as Luna perused her collection of records.

"What records do you have there?" asked Hermione.

"All sorts ranging from children's tunes to symphonies. I'm trying to decide which one suits the mood of going to Hogwarts for the first time. Would you like to help? I can also put on the song that fits you."

Hermione nodded and switched sides of the compartment to sit next to Luna. She listened to the Song that Luna said was fitting to her style of magic and was impressed. It did seem to match her temperament. While they were rifling through the case, Hermione asked Luna a question.

"What House do you hope to get into?"

"Well, I was talking with my familiar, Fawkes, and he thought I'd do good in Gryffindor because of my sense of adventure and desire to learn in… non-conventional ways. I had originally thought to hope for Ravenclaw but Fawkes informed me the Claws don't like it if someone has an oddball methodology. No offense, Hermione."

"None taken. I'm guilty of the same thing sometimes. I have an ability to understand animals and non-traditional languages like Cornish Pixies, owls and the like. I published an article in _Magizoology Monthly_ that outlined that ability and also spoke in depth of the Late Neolithic Period for the Sunshine Daisy Pixie clan that live in the Forbidden Forest. While I was doing the initial research, the others in my House thought I was being stupid and strange."

The record for Chopin's 'Piano Concerto Number Two' was eventually chosen and played softly in the background while Hermione and Luna slid into an in-depth discussion about magical creatures. Luna brought up some of the creatures that she and her father sought out every summer. Hermione's eyes lit up at the thought of learning something new. Creatures like Wrackspurts, Nargles and Crumple-horned Snorkacks were discussed and plans made.

"One of my goals in life is to create a collection of trading cards similar to the Chocolate Frogs Cards but instead of famous people use the creatures that my father and I search for," commented Luna at one point.

Harry watched amused at the whole thing. It was nice that Hermione made a new friend and Luna seemed like a nice person. He quietly opened up a trade journal and settled in to read.

* * *

The train pulled into the station and Hagrid collected the First Years. As they were traveling over the lake, Fawkes' Song echoed in her mind.

' _I thought this was appropriate, Luna.'_

"Silly bird. Thank you, it does seem appropriate as we do appear to be making an assault on to the shores of the castle."

When she arrived with the others in the Great Hall, the Sorting went as Fawkes had suggested it would. When she settled in her seat amongst her new House, a sandy-haired Second Year waved and greeted her.

"Hi, I'm Neville Longbottom. I'm a friend of Harry and Hermione. Let me be the first to welcome you to Gryffindor House."

"Thank you. I'm looking to being the best in my chosen field of study." It was too noisy to really hear his song but what she did Hear was thumpy.

"Oh? What would that be?"

"I want to be an explorer and discover all sorts of creatures and animals that most think are non-existent or mythological. I want to be the new version of Newt Scamander. Eventually I'd like to create a collection of trading cards similar to the Chocolate Frogs Cards but instead of famous people use the creatures that my father and I search for."

"Wow! That sounds like an ambitious and interesting goal, Miss Lovegood. I wish you luck."

After the Feast, Headmistress McGonagall gave the announcements and the students were released to head off to their respective Houses. Moving portraits, staircases and roving ghosts were seen throughout. The Strings and Songs were heard throughout like a chaotic symphony yet despite that Luna was in paradise.

Smiling, she entered the Gryffindor Common Room. The Sixth year Prefect, Percy Weasley, gave a brief description of the general layout of the Gryffindor Tower, where things were located and what was expected of them. The girls were led up to their dorm room where Luna found her trunk waiting for her. She pulled out her nightclothes and toiletries then headed to the bathroom. Once she was done, she climbed into bed and drifted off to sleep.

* * *

_**2 September 1992** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**I made it into Gryffindor! I even got to make friends with Harry Potter and his girlfriend Hermione Granger! There's a nice boy who introduced himself as Neville Longbottom. I'm sort of familiar with the background of that family. It's sad that he will never get to know his parents…** _

_**Is it possible to know when you've found the right person to spend the rest of your life with 'right off the bat,' as that American artist I met during the summer once said? Neville is rather cute. His song is upbeat and blends nicely with mine… time will tell, I guess.** _

* * *

The next morning when she entered the Common Room, she found Neville waiting for her.

"An escort to the Great Hall, Mr. Longbottom?"

"Can't fault me for being gallant, Miss Lovegood. Besides, your ability of hearing a person's Song has intrigued me."

"You know? How'd you find out?"

"Harry and Hermione are my friends. Hermione was jabbering like crazy about your gift on the carriage ride to the castle."

The two of them left the Common Room and descended the stairs; Neville continued the discussion.

"So what do you hear from me?"

"Well…"

"Aw, come on…"

"Have you ever heard of any muggle songwriters? The one in particular for you is called 'Katy Perry.' Her song is titled, 'Firework.'"

Neville shook his head no. Luna just patted him on the shoulder then bounced off to sit with her friend Ginny Weasley. Neville stood there with a mesmerized look on his face before wandering over to where Harry and Hermione were sitting at the Hufflepuff table.

He sat down still sporting that dazed look. Harry smirked at him.

"Neville? Problem?"

Neville just looked up at him, "I think I'm in love. I just met the girl and I think I'm in love."

Hermione grinned at him, "I told you. So what song does she hear from you?"

"Hmm? Someone by the name of 'Katy Perry who sung 'Firework;' I have no idea what it sounds like."

"It's aptly named and a very fitting piece. It's about standing up for what you believe in no matter what anyone else tells you."

"So how is it fitting to me?"

"Well, at the start of our first year, I'd sworn that you were just a shy and quiet person desperate to blend into the background. Now though, you've grown and blossomed. Totally unrecognizable from that other personality," she commented.

"Huh… I guess so," he replied thoughtfully.

* * *

Luna was sitting in her Herbology class taking notes but her mind was on Neville. She was amazed at herself. She was eleven years old for Merlin's sake! To fall head over heels this early in life was incredible! _Well, Neville's is kind of cute…_

Later, she entered the Library in order to search for a Transfiguration book to help with her homework assignment when she spotted Neville haunting the Herbology stacks.

"Neville Longbottom, are you stalking me?" she asked in a teasing tone.

"Um… no?"

Luna just shyly smiled at him and moved a lock of hair behind her ear, "So what are you looking for?"

"Um…. Pl- plant stuff…"

"Neville! There you are!" Harry came up from behind and slapped his hand on Neville's shoulder, "Oh, hi Luna! Neville, you find that book on Magical Water Plants of the Mediterranean?"

"Harry James Potter, get away from them!" hissed an indignant Hermione as she dragged him away from the scene.

Neville turned back to Luna, his face a brilliant red blush. She on the other hand, was calm and serene, looking at him with mirthful silvery eyes.

"I think Harry Potter was trying to distract the Dinglehopper Flies. They tend to get attracted to people who are nervous about being around pretty people. Do you consider me to be pretty?" she asked with a slight twitch of a grin.

"I… we… Oh, Merlin…" stammered Neville as he tried to come up with a useful escape. Finally summoning his Gryffindor Courage, he took a deep breath and faced Luna head-on.

"Luna, you and I have only just met and yet I find myself intrigued by you. You see and hear things in a way that harkens back to a more carefree age of innocence. It's refreshing, original and I find myself wanting more. I'm trying not to come off as creepy but there it is…" he trailed off into silence waiting for her response.

A small playful smile grew on her face, "Are you asking me to be your friend, Neville Longbottom?" He nodded in response, "then I would be happy to be yours."

* * *

Luna brought out her record player at the end of the day and set it up in the Gryffindor Common Room. The others gathered around her and were obviously curious about the selection of music. She had a wide selection from 'Alternative Rock' to 'Smooth Jazz.' She glanced around the room and asked if they minded if she were to choose a song at random. She explained her Gift of Magesight and Songs then picked out a record that would be fun to listen to. The song she picked was Jerry Lee Lewis' Pop song, 'Great Balls of Fire.'

Everyone was snapping their fingers or tapping their feet to the beat of the song and a few of the more adventurous ones were dancing to the music. When it was over, one of the upper year girls, Angelina Johnson, asked her what was so special about that song.

"Oh, it's the Song for the Twins. Remember how I said that each person has their own Song according to the String of magic I can see?" Angelina nodded and grinned at the Twins who broke out in gales of laughter.

"You're right, 'Great Balls of Fire' is perfect for those two."

Luna picked out a few other records and played them for the others amusement. She was tickled pink when she was approached by Neville who had screwed up his courage to ask her to dance with him to one of the slower songs.

* * *

_**5 September 1992** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**I never realized just how starved for music the magical world is! If it's not Celestina Warbeck or The Weird Sisters, there's really nothing available to the general population. I've gotten compliments and requests from just about every House. I was surprised that there were Slytherins asking as well; I thought they'd be the last group with an interest in muggle music.** _

_**I wonder if I'm at the forefront of a revolution here? Wait, there was a group that had a song that asks that very question… who was it? Oh, yeah… The Beatles.** _

* * *

By the end of the first week, the Hogwarts Rumor Mill was in full swing about Luna's collection of songs that reportedly were matched to a person's temperament. It even had it's own name which amused Luna and Fawkes to no end; Luna Lovegood's 'Magical Music Mystery Medley.' People were approaching her, asking what their song was and/or if they could hear the songs on her record player.

It finally got to the point that on Saturday, Headmistress Minerva McGonagall had requested that she bring down her record player and collection to allow everyone to hear their song.

"Headmistress, I don't think that's possible as I don't have _everyone's_ song. I couldn't carry that many in my trunk," Luna replied quietly.

"Would you have the songs at home? I could have a house-elf go and retrieve them for you," asked the Headmistress.

Luna pondered that for a moment and took the time to look at the Strings to determine which would be the right path. She emerged out of the trance and agreed that sending a house-elf would be a good idea.

"Neenie?" called McGonagall. There was a small pop and Neenie the house-elf appeared.

"Yes Headmistress Kitty?" answered Neenie. Luna quietly giggled at the name the Headmistress was given while Minerva just rolled her eyes.

"I need you to go to Miss Lovegood's home to retrieve her collection of music records. She will give you the address and the location of the records. When you have retrieved them, please put them in the Great Hall."

So Luna gave out her address, the location of the records and Neenie popped out a moment later. She popped back in ten minutes later saying that the mission was accomplished then popped away again. Minerva escorted Luna down to the Great Hall and slowed to a halt when she saw just how many records Luna had amassed. Each of the four House tables was completely filled and organized according to genre. Minerva glanced at Luna who just smiled serenely back then gazed dreamily off in the distance.

"I- I'm impressed, Miss Lovegood. So…which one would be mine?"

Luna looked at Minerva for a moment before walking over to the 'Rock' section and pulling out a record from the boxes. She placed the record on the player and started playing The Beatles "It's Been A Hard Day's Night." Minerva closed her eyes and listened to the song and the words and smiled to herself. It was perfectly matched. Luna slid back into another trance as she listened to someone's Song while waiting for Minerva to finish listening to hers.

"Mmm… Yes, we're definitely going to have to get more of these record players if everyone is going to want to hear their Song. Where did you acquire this one?"

Luna was still in her trance so Minerva waited a moment before tapping the girl on the shoulder. Luna took a deep breath and gave a minute shudder then blinked owlishly.

"I'm sorry Headmistress. What were you saying?"

"Two things; One, where did you acquire this record player and two, where were you just now?"

"Oh, I acquired the player at the music shop that's located across from the London Royal Conservatory Hall. As for where I was, I was just listening to a playful Song called "Baby Elephant Walk" by a muggle named Henri Mancini."

"Who was that Song destined for?" asked the Headmistress.

"Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle."

"Could you find it here in the collection? I'd like to hear it."

Luna began moving through the collection in search of the record. Once she found it and started playing it, Minerva let out a chuckle.

"Yes, I can see how this would be a good match for them, appropriate. Ok, I want to give you a little test. I'm going to give you a few names and I'd like to hear what you've selected for them. First, Remus Lupin; Second, Severus Snape; Third, Filius Flitwick; and Fourth, Poppy Pomfrey. Minerva then sent out a request for the chosen teachers to join her in the Great Hall.

* * *

It took Luna a few moments before she had collected the four songs and loaded the first one onto the player. When she was ready, she turned to find the four selected teachers entering the Hall.

"Minerva? What's going on? Why did you need us?" inquired Poppy rather worriedly.

"I'm sure that you've heard the rumors that Miss Lovegood here has the ability to match a Song to just about everyone here in the castle. I had a house-elf retrieve her entire collection from home and requested her to prepare the Songs that matched you four. I wanted to see if her talents were all that were reported. We were just about ready to play them. Take a seat and join us; I want your input."

First up was Remus Lupin's Song by Duran Duran and was titled, "Hungry Like The Wolf." As they were listening, there were nods of agreement from the assembled group as to just how perfectly matched it was, Severus was chuckling which surprised everyone.

Next up was Severus' Song; it was by a muggle songwriter known as Elvis Presley and called, 'A Little Less Conversation.' Filius laughed uproariously at his Song by Lou Bega titled, "Mambo No. 5." It was the genre of 'Pop, Latin and Mambo' a tune he knew he'd be humming all day long. The last song was actually a parody song of Walt Disney's Frozen 'Let it go.' This one was titled, 'I don't know' and got Poppy to fall out of her seat from laughing so much while nodding her head in total agreement and giving a thumbs up!

"Oh, wow! Miss Lovegood that was incredible!" gushed Remus who was still wheezing from Poppy's Song, "Do you have some sort of play list that covers everyone or is it just done on the fly?"

"It's just whatever I happen to See and Hear at the moment. I can't control it; some people have funny Songs, some have sad ones, others give me the creeps," Luna replied while shrugging her shoulders.

Filius finally got control of his breathing and laughter, "Ok! I want to hear what everyone else's is. I think we should have everyone assemble here in the Hall and spend the day just listening to these records."

"That was my original intention, Filius, but I think we should get more of these record players as we don't want to wear out this one. It belongs to Miss Lovegood here," commented Minerva.

"Where do we get more of these players, then? Asked Poppy.

"According to Miss Lovegood, she acquired hers from a music store across the way from the Royal Conservatory Hall in muggle London," answered Minerva.

Filius nodded, "Ok, then I shall contact a few former muggleborn students of mine and ask them to head over to this music shop. Oh, I can't wait to hear some of the others!"

* * *

_**12 September 1992** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**Headmistress McGonagall told me that she contacted some former muggleborn students of hers and asked them to go into London to pick up a few more record players. I hope we'll have enough, my collection is so popular! I'm so excited that there will be a school-wide exhibition of music! I'm still shocked by the general reaction from everyone. It makes me wonder why no one has ever tried this before?** _

* * *

It took the better part of three days before the record players were delivered via house-elves. They were unboxed, assembled and in place in the Great Hall on the Teacher's table. The 'Magical Music Mystery Medley' had been placed in temporary storage by the elves and retrieved as soon as the Great Hall was prepped and readied.

The students were curious as to why they were called into the Great Hall just before lunchtime for an important announcement. Once they arrived and spotted the musical collection, the chatter and sounds of excitement sprang up. The students quickly found their seats and tried to take the records from their boxes only to find they couldn't actually touch them. Disappointed, they settled in and waited for the Headmistress to start the announcements.

**"Students of Hogwarts, may I have you attention please! Thanks to the generosity of Miss Luna Lovegood and her 'Magical Music Mystery Medley,' we will be taking the morning to listen to five songs, a teacher and one student from each of the four Houses. After that, if anyone has a request, I ask that you come to see me. Do not bother Miss Lovegood or you will face point loss or detention."**

That got the assembled students to start up with the excited chatter again.

**"So without further ado, we will start off with a teacher's then move onto the four students. When it is time for lunch, there will be a table set up in the back with sandwiches and drinks."**

Minerva held up a list and read off the names of the teachers and students whose Songs were to be played.

**Teachers:**

Minerva McGonagall – The Beatles, 'It's Been A Hard Day's Night'

**Students:**

Luna Lovegood – Weezer, 'An Island In The Sun'

Hermione Granger – Santana/Michelle Branch, 'A Game of Love'

Hannah Abbott – Ok Go, 'Upside Down & Inside Out'

Pansy Parkinson – Ray Charles, 'Shake Your Tail Feathers'

The corresponding records were chosen then one at a time, the songs were played. Everyone was having a blast listening to the music and notes were being taken as to what moods and feelings were conjured as the result of hearing them. Parchment and quills were pulled out and lists of requests were being made by the muggleborn students and even by some of the magically raised who knew some of the classical artists. Some good-natured teasing was sent at the students and the Headmistress for their personal songs.

Pansy turned bright red at the thought of someone coming up to her later and asking her to 'shake her tail feathers.' She brought this up to her Head of House, so Severus gave the assembled students the admonishment that any teasing that resulted from hearing these songs would result in point loss, detention and loss of privilege from hearing any more songs.

* * *

_**Later that evening in the Headmistress' office…** _

Minerva was sitting in her chair and going over the end of day reports from the portraits and whatever parchment that made its way onto her desk. There was only one dissenter amongst the paintings of previous leaders, Phineas Black. He didn't like the fact that there were so many students singing and dancing in the halls. Truth was, he didn't like very much of anything so Minerva tended to ignore him.

"I must say Minerva, this new idea of playing these musical records to the students is wonderful!" commented Armando Dippet, the Headmaster from Dumbledore's time, "It's been absolutely amazing at how joyous the students seem. They're more lively and appear to look forward to the next performance."

Minerva let out a happy smile, "I'm glad to hear that Armando. It certainly does this old heart some good to hear laughter and random singing break out in the halls."

Meanwhile, Phineas was sitting in his frame stewing over not being listened to and made a decision. He had frames at other magical locations, so he got up and went in search of someone with the power to do something about this travesty. Muggle music in the hallowed halls of Hogwarts? Not on his watch!

* * *

_**14 September 1992** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**I was so looking forward to my classes. I really was but I've heard that a ghost teaches History of Magic. That's not good; ghosts tend to stick to one thing for eternity.** _

**_My other classes are fun though; I'm particularly interested in Herbology. I think if things go well with this one, it could help me with my Chocolate Snorkack card series._ **

**_I wonder what Fawkes is up to?_ **

* * *

Luna was sitting in her History of Magic class after lunch and wishing that she could be anywhere else but here. The ghost teacher, Cuthbert Binns, was monotonously boring! Droning on about nothing but Goblin Wars from so long ago was causing her to fall asleep. With her ability to See, History was something that was in reality exciting and fun! Not this class though, this was a travesty! If it weren't against her nature to not make waves, she'd be spearheading a campaign to get the ghost exorcised and a new teacher brought in. Finally the bell rang and she dashed out of the class the moment she gathered up her belongings. She spotted Ginny Weasley in the crowd and caught up to her childhood friend.

"Hello Ginny. Did you have a nice nap in History class as well?"

Ginny gave a brief snort of amusement, "Yeah I did. I'm surprised that something hasn't been done about that ghost. Of all the possible History teachers ever to come out of Hogwarts or even all of Britain, _why_ are we still stuck with that bore?"

"I cannot answer that. Even the Strings of magic are failing to tell me why the ghost has to remain. I would've thought that with the new administration they'd have gotten rid of the bad teachers that Dumbledore was so fond of," groused Luna.

"Oooh, you mentioning the Strings reminded me. I was wondering if you could give me a sneak peek as to what my Song is?" Ginny quietly asked.

Luna thought for a moment then replied, "Arthur de Lulli, Classical composer for the Song called 'Chopsticks'."

"Would you allow me to listen to it on your record player tonight?" Ginny inquired but Luna shook her head.

"I promised Headmistress McGonagall that I wouldn't. She wants everyone to hear the Songs together. Sorry Ginny."

Ginny shrugged her shoulders, "It was worth a try. Thanks anyway, Luna. So? Next class?"

"Herbology. We should hurry," answered Luna.

* * *

In addition to all of Luna's classes, she was also trying to organize her notes about creating a Magizoology version of the Chocolate Frog Cards. She had each creature categorized by type and was now trying to decide how much information should be written on the cards. She spotted Neville Longbottom entering the Gryffindor Common Room and waved him over.

"Hello Neville. Have you been having a good day?"

"Yeah, so far. I was just in the greenhouses where we were repotting Mandrakes. I got to teach the class, as it's my method that is the now approved and official way to repot them without needing ear protection. Heh, it's kind of odd to be standing up at the teacher's end and instructing everyone how to gently remove the plants from the old pots and put them in the new ones. It's really nice when others listen to what you have to teach."

"I'm glad for you Neville though I do have one thing to say about that," she commented then paused. He raised an eyebrow in quiet question.

"You stink! I wanted to ask you a question about one of my projects but now I think I'll wait until you've had a shower," she teased him gently.

Neville gave her a small smirk and amused grunt, patted her on the arm and headed off to his dorm room.

When Neville returned, she showed him her work in regards to the Magizoology Chocolate Frog Card arrangement she had set up on one of the study tables. He looked them over while she fretted nervously. This was _way_ out of her comfort zone! Normally, she'd just work on a project then put it away where no one would ever see it.

Neville had asked about what sort of environment some of the animals were reported to live in and suggested that a general notation of said environment should be included in the description box.

"So to recap, you have cards for flying creatures, ground based creatures, I think I saw a couple for aquatic creatures. What about the 'normal' creatures like kneazles, hippogriffs, dragons and the like?"

"Why should I put those in? They're everyday type of creatures," Luna questioned.

"Right, they should be the cards that a person should expect to get as a part of a pack. Think of how the current Frog cards are. You have the Common, Rare, Very Rare, Exclusive and One of a Kind card. If you want others to keep buying your cards and adding to their collection, you need to have a similar setup to keep people coming back for more. I'm also going to assume that the images will be moving?"

Luna nodded at the last question while writing down all of the information on a notepad.

"I would recommend that you work with Hermione when you get to the point of getting pictures of the Common creatures like pixies, fairies, merfolk, et cetera. She's able to understand their speech without having to know or speak the language. Comes in really handy sometimes," he said.

"Thank you Neville. I appreciate your help in this. I never would've thought to come up with these ideas."

"Bloody Hell, is Loony _still_ going on about her stupid card collection idea?" interrupted Ron Weasley.

"What do you want, Weasley?" groaned Neville, "Can't you see that we're having a private conversation?"

"Wanted to know if you wanted to play chess with me? Seamus is too busy doing something stupid with Dean."

Neville gave Luna an exasperated sigh and a look, "No, Ron. Go away. Go ask one of your brothers. I will tell you this, if you _ever_ call her Loony again, I'll sic the Twins after you."

Once Ron had grumbled about no one wanted to play with him and wandered away, Luna leaned over to Neville and whispered, "He actually has two Songs available for him. One speaks of his greedy soul and the other speaks of his low intelligence. You want to hear it next time we have the assembly? I could speak with the Headmistress."

"Hehe, yeah I think I'd like that. Which one though? McGonagall said we only get one." Neville asked.

"I think the one about his intelligence. It's sillier. Guaranteed to make you laugh," she replied knowingly.

"I look forward to it then. Well…was there anything else? Do you need any help with homework?"

Luna shook her head negatively. Her classes were coming along smoothly.

* * *

Harry Potter had approached her two days before September nineteenth and asked her if she had anything in the Medley that he could borrow to play for Hermione's birthday. She replied that yes, he could borrow Hermione's Song and that she also had a few other love songs if that was what he was interested. She recommended any of the love songs sung by Elvis Presley or one by Frank Sinatra called 'Fly Me To The Moon.'

She let Harry listen to those particular records and eventually he chose the Sinatra Song. Luna asked Harry to keep the fact that he borrowed the record from her quiet, as she didn't want to get bombarded by the others or for them to think that she was playing favoritism. He assured her that on Hermione's birthday, the two of them would be in one of the nicely furnished conference rooms that were located on the fifth floor.

* * *

That Sunday found Luna relaxing out by the Black Lake, soaking up the last rays of sunshine for the day and the last bit of warmth for the season when Fawkes flamed in.

_'Good afternoon, Luna. How have you been today?'_

"Oh, everything has been fine Fawkes. How have you been? I don't get to see very much of you lately."

' _I apologize for that Luna. I'm a Nest Leader amongst my kind and sometimes my duties there require my presence for extended periods.'_

"Is there anything I could do to help? Could I help keep the chicks in line?"

Fawkes just gave an amused chuckle, _'I don't think that would be possible Luna. My kind likes to nest in the face of cliffs and it would be very precarious for you to be there.'_

"Oh, pooh. I was hoping to see some baby phoenixes," she pouted.

' _I've been told that our young ones are not exactly the cutest creatures on the planet. They're featherless and kind of screechy.'_

"That wouldn't bother me. The Humperdink Hornswogglers are rumored to be so hideous in their juvenile stage as to cause those who look upon them to go insane."

Fawkes just slowly shook his head in amusement. He wondered if there could even be such a creature but eventually decided that it wasn't important enough to investigate.

' _Are you settling into the school all right? No one there is giving you any troubles?'_

"Nothing I can't handle. Ronald Weasley tried to insult me about a week ago but Neville Longbottom shot him down."

' _Is this something that should be reported to your Head of House?'_

"I don't believe so at this point but if it does happen again, Neville has suggested that I do take it up before it gets worse. I just don't want to make waves, it's just not my way," she hung her head sadly at the end of her response.

As a need to change the subject to something happier was desired, Fawkes asked her what else had been happening in the school. She told him about the naming of her Song collection by some of the other Gryffindors and how it spread to the other Houses. She then told him about the once a month gatherings to hear five Songs dedicated to a particular teacher and four students. She described the reactions to the Songs that were played as being hilarious. Professor Flitwick's Song was particularly well received by the diminutive man. Fawkes chuckled at her story and promised to be there for the next gathering.

"Oh, one other thing Fawkes. I was wondering if you would be willing to be the representative for one of my new avian-related Magizoology cards that I've been working on. I just need a bit of general information like environment your kind normally lives in, types of foods that phoenixes usually eat, how many eggs in a clutch, that sort of thing."

' _Interesting…Yes, I believe that I can help you on this Luna. It should prove to be entertaining to say the least. I can see that you have a special classification for the cards, where would I fit in those categories?'_

"I was thinking of either 'Rare' or 'Very Rare.' That would put your card as one that would be included in every one hundredth or five hundredth packs as opposed to the Common, which would be every pack.

' _Very well then. You let me know when you're ready to collect the information and to take my picture. Do you have someone in mind to take such photographs?'_

"Yes, there's a boy in my House that is a self-proclaimed 'camera nut' as he likes to put it. I've seen his work and they're very professional."

Eventually, it was time for her to go inside and get ready for the evening meal then to do a bit of reading for an upcoming Transfiguration test before heading to bed.

* * *

The next morning Luna cornered Colin Creevey and asked him if he would be willing to help her with taking photographs of various creatures for her new card collection. She didn't even get halfway through her description of her project before Colin was agreeing to help. She informed him that they would work out a contract for services when she got closer to the point where his talents would be needed. She told him that she was planning on gathering the first set of creatures closer to around the beginning of November.

When Colin asked her which creatures she was going to be starting with, she said that she'd start with something simple like cats or kneazles, dogs, a snake, owls, elves and she was in negotiations with a centaur. She was thinking or at least hoping that Hermione Granger of Ravenclaw House would assist her in getting the local Pixie clan from the Forbidden Forest to take part in the project.


	3. Chapter 3

_**1 October 1992** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**It's been a whole month here at Hogwarts! It's amazing how fast things are progressing. My Chocolate Snorkack cards are coming along; I hope to have the first set published by at least December… I don't know, we'll see. I still need to find a publisher.** _

_**Neville is so cute. When he smiles at me… my tummy starts to flutter. That lop-sided smile of his… sigh.** _

_**Headmistress McGonagall has come up with a wonderful idea for the newly established Music Program; I get to setup and organize Hogwarts' first ever Music Room!** _

* * *

September finally gave way to October and McGonagall had conferred with Luna that instead of picking a day during the week right before lunch that it would probably be better to hold the musical assembly on a weekend like Sunday so no classes were missed. Another thing that was arranged was for an adjacent room to the library be built and outfitted with additional record players and headphones so the students could go there during their off hours and listen to whatever music they wanted irrespective to what was going to be played by the Headmistress. It turned out to be a giant hit with all of the students and staff. It was _so_ popular that a waiting list chart had to be installed along with a time limit of one hour per person.

The first Sunday had the new line-up with the teacher's Song and then the four students.

**Teacher:**

Rubeus Hagrid – Fifth Harmony, "I'm in Love with a Monster."

**Students:**

Draco Malfoy – Led Zeppelin, 'The Immigrant Song'

Ron Weasley – Julius Fucik, 'Enter the Gladiators'

Susan Bones – Ok Go, 'Here We Go Again'

Cho Chang – Beethoven, 'Fur Elise (Piano version)'

Everyone was howling, dancing and grooving to Hagrid's theme, even Hagrid was laughing along. It was so fitting and appropriate! Ron's Song had everyone in stitches from laughing so much. True to form, Ron didn't get the reference and just sat there steaming with his ears tinged red. Draco on the other hand got the message and gave a small, sly smirk. Cho and a lot of other girls were moved to tears when they heard the sweet melody of her Song.

* * *

Luna was sitting in her Transfiguration class Listening to the teacher's Song. The teacher, Professor Henry Jones, spotted the dreamy look on her face and questioned her inattentiveness to the lesson.

"Miss Lovegood? Is there a reason why you're not paying attention? Have I become so boring?" he inquired.

"Hmm? I'm sorry sir. No, actually your Song is what was distracting me. It's very moving."

That got everyone's attention, "What's the name of my Song then?"

"John Williams' 'Indiana Jones theme song.'

"Oh? A song with my name in it? Do you have it in your collection?" she nodded, "Then I'll have to stop by the library this afternoon."

* * *

In addition to the upcoming Halloween celebration, the first match of the new Quidditch season was upon the school. After the experimental night game held last year that utilized Harry's glow in the dark pastes, it was decided to hold that set of games in the spring when it would be warmer. When Luna arrived at the game announcer's box carrying her record player and two records in her bag, everyone nearby could see that something special was planned.

She got her equipment set up and asked Lee Jordan for the megaphone. Setting the device down on the table, she began a rhythmic combination of ' _Stomp, Stomp, Clap.'_ After the third sequence, it spread out from there as the muggleborn and raised quickly picked up on which Song Luna was about to play.

' **Buddy, you're a boy, make a big noise**

**Playing in the street, gonna be a big man someday**

**You got mud on your face, you big disgrace**

**Kicking your can all over the place…**

The muggleborn and raised then shouted:

**WE WILL, WE WILL ROCK YOU!**

**WE WILL, WE WILL ROCK YOU!**

' **Buddy, you're a young man, hard man**

**Shouting in the street, gonna take on the world someday**

**You got blood on your face, you big disgrace**

**Waving your banner all over the place…**

The muggleborn and raised then shouted:

**WE WILL, WE WILL ROCK YOU!**

**WE WILL, WE WILL ROCK YOU!**

' **Buddy, you're an old man, poor man**

**Pleading with your eyes, gonna make you some peace someday**

**You got mud on your face, you big disgrace**

**Somebody better put you back into your place!**

**WE WILL, WE WILL ROCK YOU!**

**WE WILL, WE WILL ROCK YOU!**

**WE WILL, WE WILL ROCK YOU!**

**WE WILL, WE WILL ROCK YOU!**

By the time the song ended, all the spectators regardless of which affiliation they were in were screaming and chanting the chorus. Then Lee got on the air and announced the players on the Gryffindor and Slytherin teams. The game was brutal as usual, each team revved up from the opening song.

When the halfway mark came around which required the Keepers to switch sides, Luna had set up the second Song which was a stirring, almost militaristic piece by John Williams titled 'The Imperial March.' While that Song was playing, more than one Slytherin vowed to get a copy of it and declared it to be the House theme song.

* * *

Luna had decided early on to use the time that she was in History of Magic to work on her Chocolate Snorkack Cards. She had taken the suggestion from Ginny to use that particular animal as the chocolate form since it was instantly attributed to her and her father. She had worked out the layout of the cards and taken Neville's suggestion of having the Common cards as the most prolific then tapering down from there. So far, the Owl, Kneazle, Dog, Snake and about eleven other 'normal' animals were featured. She had spoken with other students who collected the normal Chocolate Frog cards to gauge their reactions to the new series and to get their insights and desires about what they liked and didn't like about her cards. So far, the reaction was mostly positive. The serious collectors were intrigued by the novelty and it led to a greater in-depth discussion about the animals and their habitats.

* * *

Luna spoke with Harry and found out how to get into the kitchens to speak with the elves. When asked why, she simply stated that she'd like to include them in her Chocolate Snorkack cards and needed some information beyond what was 'common knowledge.' Harry showed her the painting of the bowl of fruit and instructed her that in order to open it, she just needed to 'tickle the pear.'

Once inside, they were immediately spotted and several elves rushed over to see if there was anything that the two of them needed. Harry calmly asked for a small bottle of orange juice then left while Luna asked to speak to the Head Elf.

An obviously older elf approached and asked, "What can Flory be doing for young Miss?"

"Flory, I'm working on a project to create a creature version of the famous chocolate frog cards and was wondering if there was an elf who would be willing to be a representative of your species and give some basic information beyond what is referred to as 'common knowledge," Luna explained.

"Perhaps if young miss would elaborate on this project, Flory would be happy to be this representative."

So Luna displayed the beginnings of her project along with representative cards of the ones she made for kneazles, dogs and owls. She explained that she would also like to take a picture of either Flory or a random elf for the card. Flory became excited at the prospect of _finally_ getting to share their history and knowledge to the wider world. It would definitely be of a benefit to those elves with not-so-nice masters.

"Flory would be honored to help out with this project Miss. When would you like to go over the history and habits of the elves?"

"If you have time, I'd like to do it now since I'm here," asked Luna.

So for the next couple of hours, Flory the Head Elf taught Luna about the history and habits of the house-elf. There was a lot of information that even _she_ didn't know. As they were wrapping up the discussion portion of the lesson, Luna sent for Colin to bring his camera to take a few pictures of the elves.

* * *

During the entire month for the ramp up to Halloween, season appropriate songs were played over the school's public announcement system to put people in the 'mood.' There were plenty of people from both sides of the magical divide that were putting in requests for specific songs. It impressed and amazed Harry and his friends just how popular all this music was making Luna and yet she just serenely glided through the halls seemingly oblivious to it all.

The Music Room that Minerva had created with input from Luna was officially opened the first Saturday of October. It was laid out with sound deadening wards so students wouldn't interfere with another group's playing. The sections were grouped based on the general genre of 'Rock,' 'Pop,' 'Country,' et cetera. Within those sections were the sub-genre records that the students could take their time to explore. Draco Malfoy had taken to practically living in the 'Rock' section listening to as many Led Zeppelin songs as he could find. When asked why, he would shrug and say that he didn't know; the music just worked for him. There was even conversations from other students about creating a Dance Hall that would utilize the records from the Music Room.

* * *

_**31 October 1992** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**Halloween is here and it's sad to see Harry Potter moping around the castle. I understand why he does but at least he has his friends and Hermione Granger to help him get through the feelings.** _

* * *

On Halloween day there were live bats swarming in the rafters, floating pumpkins, spiders and the castle ghosts put on an aerial display for the amusement of the assembled crowds. Normally Harry wouldn't have participated in the celebrations but Hermione had suggested that he hold his memorial earlier in the evening then quietly join in afterwards. What surprised and moved Harry greatly was that he was not the only one participating in the memorial. Everyone who had lost someone during the previous war was present in the makeshift chapel that had been erected by the house-elves. Candles were lit and prayers murmured.

Harry had received permission from his Head of House as well as the Headmistress to hold a Samhain Blessing that year and so before dinner that evening, everyone gathered in the Courtyard. In the center of the planned activities was a platform that held a number of black, white and red candles. Harry got everyone's attention then spoke in a loud and clear voice:

" **Ladies and gentlemen! Tonight we're here to celebrate the event known traditionally as Samhain, or for the more modern of you Halloween. What I've been given special permission to do is to hold this small blessing to remember the ones we've lost in the past. I ask that all of you gathered to take a quiet moment and think of your loved ones who have left this world and join with me in this simple prayer. I have provided red ribbons so if anyone wishes to partake can do so."**

He then turned and tied a red ribbon to one of the candles then said aloud:

" **As the past drifts away going into a fade, I hold with me the fond memories that I've made. I enjoy the present, for where I've stayed; it is nothing I would ever trade. I embrace the future for which I've prayed and welcome abundance for yet another decade."**

When the Feast commenced in the Great Hall, Halloween music like Oingo Boingo's, 'It's A Dead Man's Party,' Bobby Pickett's 'Monster Mash' and other songs in similar style were played in the background to the joy of the assembled students and staff. Pomona leaned over to where Minerva was sitting.

"I must say Minerva, that I'm pleased with how lively and energetic this castle has become since Miss Lovegood brought that record player and her songs this past September."

"It truly is spectacular and amazing that it's only been two months. When you think about it, it seems like the time has just flown by. It makes me wonder what other sort of creative outlets we should be encouraging," Minerva replied back.

"Definitely something to discuss at the next staff meeting as well as the next Board of Governors meeting," Pomona agreed. Minerva just nodded thoughtfully.

* * *

_**At the Ministry for Magic…** _

"Dolores? Are you in?"

Dolores Umbridge, Senior Undersecretary for the Minister, was sitting at her desk working on some last minute parchment work to get some new restrictions against what she called 'dangerous half-breeds' done before the next sitting of the Wizengamot looked up and around for the speaker.

"Dolores, it's I, Phineas Black," Dolores turned to face the portrait.

"Oh! Professor Black. How might I be of help?" she simpered.

"I bring bad and disturbing news from Hogwarts. It seems that there has been a student who has been bringing new and revolutionary ideas into its hallowed halls. This student, a Miss Luna Lovegood of Gryffindor House, has been bringing in music of a _muggle_ nature and sharing it with the staff and student population." Phineas warned darkly.

"Oh, dear. Well, we can't let that happen. I'll get on it right away…"

* * *

_**1 November 1992** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**I have a busy month ahead of me. I have it planned to go with Hagrid to visit the webs of the Acromantula colony here in the Forbidden Forest. I haven't asked him yet, but I doubt he'll say no.** _

_**I have a History test coming up… so not looking forward to that. Binns is BORING!** _

_**I wonder what other creatures I can work with in the Forest? If need be, I'll get Hermione Granger to go with me since she understands the languages.** _

* * *

Luna was in the Library studying for an upcoming History of Magic test. Well, outwardly she was 'studying.' She had all the necessary books but in reality what she was doing was enveloping herself in a Trance and Watching how the _real_ events of the time period took place. She could see and hear everything that took place though any spoken or written words appeared to be or sound like modern English to her.

Ostensibly, she was supposed to be learning about the Goblin Wars of 1222. In truth what she was witnessing was the Wizengamot passing a series of unfair laws that the Goblins had no intention of following anyways. As always, the Goblins did their own thing and the magicals of the time were annoyed that the Goblins weren't 'following the script.'

Luna dipped her quill into the ink and wrote down her notes on what she Witnessed. Hermione came up from behind and read what was being written down, a frown forming on her face as it was nothing like what she had read. When Luna finally came out of her Trance, Hermione got her attention and began asking questions.

"Luna? Where did you find that information? It's not in any of the books I know of," she began.

"Hmm? Oh, hello Hermione. No, I imagine that it wouldn't be. You know that I have the Gift of Sight?" Hermione nodded, "One side benefits of that is I can See and Hear everything that takes place in time. Past, present or future, it doesn't matter. All it takes is for me to concentrate when and where I want to go. What I wrote down is what truly happened that day when the 'Goblin Wars of 1222' took place but before the Ministry put the information spin on the events for the history books."

"Wow… that's…. just wow!" Hermione paused as her mind tried to assimilate the possibilities of what Luna explained.

"I know. Sometimes it can be a right pain in the arse because I have to sit through the utterly boring lecture being given by a ghost who won't talk about anything else and texts that don't cover the truth."

"Have you considered publishing a rebuttal argument on these topics?" asked Hermione.

"It wouldn't do any good. Unless the papers were willing to speak with the aggrieved parties like the Goblins, Centaurs and the like to verify their side of the story, it would just get laughed at by the publishers. I guess I could have my father publish an article in our local newsletter, _The Quibbler_ , but it's viewed by some as a 'conspiracy theory rag not worth the parchment it was printed on.'" Luna explained sadly.

Hermione sat there pensively, taking Luna's words at heart. She leaned over and gave the younger girl a warm hug and a smile in commiseration. Hermione could see the problem and was at a loss as how to help solve it. Luna in turn, could see the warring emotions playing across the older girl's face.

"Don't worry Hermione. If there's one thing I know to be true, is that eventually all knowledge will become available and in truth at one point in our lives. We just merely have to prepare to have an open mind in the meantime."

Hermione just nodded in agreement; there was nothing else she could do at that moment. She decided to change the subject to something more lively.

"So do you know what musical choices the Headmistress has made for this month?"

"Mm-hmm… but I'm sworn to secrecy so I can't tell you."

"Darn. Could you at least tell me who are the ones chosen for the spotlight?" Luna just grinned slyly and shook her head no.

Hermione pouted but gave in anyways.

* * *

November's Magical Musical Mystery Medley Spotlight took place that Sunday and the Great Hall was filled to capacity. Everyone was eager to hear some great Songs and to find out who was chosen. The Headmistress rose from her seat and got everyone's attention.

" **Welcome everyone to this month's Musical Spotlight. So let's get to it, shall we? This month's Spotlight shall be:**

**Teacher:**

Filius Flitwick – Lou Bega 'Mambo No. 5'

**Students:**

Seamus Finnegan – Lindsey Stirling, "Roundtable Rival."

Vincent Crabbe/Gregory Goyle – "Henri Mancini, "Baby Elephant Walk."

Anthony Goldstein – Christina Aguilera, "Genie in a bottle."

Ernie Macmillan – Fat Boys, "Baby, I'm a Rich Man."

A bunch of people got up and started dancing to Flitwick's Song. It had people jumping and jiving all over the Hall.

Seamus was in heaven when "Roundtable Rival" got started, as it was a combination of Irish fast fiddles and rock and roll. He was already planning on introducing this to his friends and family back home. He got up and started dancing an Irish jig in time to the beat to the amusement of the others. A couple of other Irish students joined in as well.

The girls of Slytherin House were cooing over the Song attributed to Crabbe and Goyle or as they were quietly referred to as 'The Dense Duo,' much to their embarrassment. Pansy Parkinson in particular was giving out little kissy noises until Draco leaned over and reminded her of her own Song. She shut up at that point.

Anthony was a little embarrassed that a female artist was chosen for his but he got the message behind the Song. He had his own brilliance and was hoping for a chance to let it shine.

Ernie was just sitting there grinning like a fool as the Fat Boys began rapping out the lyrics. His snobbish ways were, in his mind, being vindicated. He certainly felt like a rich man. Justin Finch-Fletchley leaned over and whispered in his ear.

"Kind of ironic that you got this song as I'm the one from a rich and influential family," Ernie gave him a wolfish smile in return.

* * *

_**Meanwhile at the Ministry for Magic…** _

Senior Undersecretary Delores Umbridge waddled into the Minister's office as if she owned the place. Given how temperamental her mood could be and how vicious she could turn if she perceived a slight made against her or the Minister, no one was willing to say or do anything.

Minister for Magic Cornelius Fudge looked up from the novel he was reading instead of the parchment work that he was _supposed_ to be working on as Delores entered the room.

"Delores? What brings you by today? Some creature didn't lay down and die?" He smirked at his own humor.

"No, Minister. Nothing like that…yet. No, what I'm here for today is because of some rather unsettling news coming from Hogwarts. According to my sources, muggle influences have been creeping in and corrupting the young minds of the students."

"Mu-muggle? How? As I understand it, there are wards to prevent outside influences of that nature."

"Apparently, there is a young First year who has been bringing in muggle "music" and giving it out to the other children. Such practices have been known to start insurrections and other illegal behaviors. I suspect it's one of those Merlin-damned Mudbloods," she simpered.

Cornelius thought for a moment, _Merlin, did he hate doing stuff like this!_ While on one hand, introducing music to the halls of Hogwarts didn't sound like such a bad idea; on the other hand, all that new-fangled music that he had occasionally heard during the last war when he had to go into that world to deal with a witch or wizard who got stuck for whatever reason; set his teeth on edge. He glanced up to see Delores waiting impatiently for a decision.

"I think… that more information is necessary before we can make a decision one way or another." _That should do it. Put it off and let someone else deal with the problem._

Delores' eyes narrowed dangerously, "Minister, I don't think you understand the threat that this muggle mess would bring. It needs to be stomped on and stopped immediately before such behavior tears down our great and glorious community that we've worked so hard to maintain."

Fudge sighed internally, _what did he care about what children listened to as long as he didn't have to get involved?_ "I'll tell you what Delores, why don't you go up to the school and investigate this music business yourself? Hmm? Take a couple of days and if things are really as bad as you believe them to be, then I'll leave it up to you to deal with it as you see fit."

Delores' eyes lit up in barely suppressed evil glee! "Thank you Minister, I shan't let you down."

* * *

It was just after classes had let out for the day about two weeks later that found Luna speaking with Hagrid near the Forbidden Forest.

"Uh, I don't think you should be going in there alone," Hagrid hesitated.

"Oh, but I won't be alone if you go with me. I'll need a guide to lead me to their webs anyway," she replied.

"Um… have you gotten permission from Professor Lupin? He's the new Gryffindor Head of House right?"

"He is and I have. Now let's stop stalling, Hagrid. I know that you're just as curious as I am and I want to get the information for their card ready before I graduate!" She nudged him gently and he finally relented.

So Hagrid picked up his crossbow and signaled for his dog, Fang, to follow them. They began trudging through the forest looking for the markers that let everyone know the boundaries of the Acromantula colony. They were passing by a small stream when there was a noise in one of the many bushes.

A Centaur sentry stepped out and greeted Hagrid, "Greetings Hagrid. What brings you by this afternoon?"

Hagrid indicated Luna, "This young lass wanted to meet and interview the Acromantula colony for her project." The sentry glanced over at Luna, recognized her and smiled.

"Ah, yes. I'm familiar with this young witch from the school. She has been most pleasant about her quest for knowledge." Luna just curtsied in response.

"You should be warned though Hagrid, there have been several more incursions by the twin red-haired boys into our territory and the elders are not amused. If it keeps up, I'm afraid of what might happen."

Hagrid nodded and said he would pass the word along to the Headmistress before taking up the lead again in search of the spiders.

It took them the better part of another quarter hour before _finally_ coming up to the borderline. A noise from the canopy signaled that they were being watched.

"Tall one, why do you disturb our nests?" clacked a spider the size of Fang.

"I bring a young one who wishes to learn about your colony and its leader, Aragog."

The spider seemed to ponder this for a moment before turning and lead Hagrid and Luna deeper into their territory. When they reached the center, Luna was introduced to Aragog, the king of the Acromantula colony. Luna was polite in her request and sat down when motioned to. She pulled out her quill and ink along with a notepad and took notes about the stories of their creation, the habitats in which they normally live in, the food they normally ate, et cetera. When they were done, Luna bowed before Aragog and thanked him for the wonderful amount of information.

* * *

It was a slightly drizzly Saturday morning when Luna and Hermione left the castle and headed towards the Forbidden Forest. Their destination was the territory of the Cornish Pixie clan that Hermione had been in talks with and had gotten a paper published on last year. Luna brought Hermione along to help with the translations and any insights that would be beneficial for her new cards.

Luna spoke with the Chief of the Clan to understand what life was like, "What do you find to be the most difficult aspect of life here in the forest this close to the castle?"

" _Chitter, chirp, chirp, creak_." ['Mostly predations from the larger animals like the Acromantula and occasionally we have to watch out for a pair of twin red-haired devils.']

"Hermione, I do believe that we _really_ need to speak with the Headmistress regarding the Weasley Twins. They're a right menace!" Hermione agreed with a knowing look of disgust.

Luna then turned to their lead toolmaker to inquire about techniques and types of tools made. Their conversation lasted for hours.

* * *

When Luna returned to the castle, the Gryffindor ghost, Sir Nicolas, informed her that the Headmistress urgently requested her presence in her office. She turned towards the stairs and headed up to the second floor. She gave the password to the stone gargoyle and rode the spiraling staircase to the main door. After knocking, Luna heard McGonagall call out and bid her to enter.

"Ah, Miss Lovegood, I'm glad you're here. I just received word that a Ministry official and the school's Board of Governors will be arriving at any moment and would like to know if you have any instrumental classical music we could play during dinner?"

Luna thought for a moment and shuddered slightly before nodding, "Yes, I know of several that would be just fitting for the arrival of Madam Umbridge."

Minerva raised an eyebrow in surprise then nodded in understanding, "Your insight serves you well. That's good; I'll need you to get the proper records as well as the player from the library. Madam Umbridge should be arriving in about an hour; it would not do to have her noticing the more… adventurous music selections."

* * *

Senior Undersecretary to the Minister of Magic Delores Umbridge strode, well in her case…waddled with a determined air, into the Great Hall just in time for the evening meal. Joining her were the members of the school's Board of Governors. The first thing any of them noticed was the students and staff were busy making up their plates and there was a low undercurrent of conversation. The next thing that Delores noticed was the gentle background music playing. She noted that it sounded like Mozart's 'Eine Kleine Nachtmusik.' It was a relaxing and calming piece that even she recognized.

She approached the Head Table and addressed Headmistress McGonagall in an imperious tone of voice, "Headmistress, I am here to oversee a serious investigation into the allegations that you have a subversive first year student who has been distributing illegal muggle music to the student population. If this is true then it is in violation of the Statute of Secrecy and is a blatant attempt to undermine our great society…."

Minerva tried her best to listen to the blathering idiot; she really tried but in the end, she tuned her out until she could see the 'Pink Toad,' as many had quietly called her, finally ran out of steam and stopped speaking.

"Y-yes, yes Delores, fine. Would you like to stay for dinner? It would give you a chance to see and hear what sort of music the students' listen to during mealtimes? Afterwards, I can show you to their Common Rooms and you can hear what they listen to before bedtime."

Delores hesitated briefly before acquiescing, "That'll be fine, Headmistress."

* * *

The meal continued without any problems; the Governors questioned random students as they roamed the Great Hall; asking them what they thought about the new idea of having music played during dinner and in their Common Rooms. All reviews came back as positive though there were some dissenters as to _which_ songs were being played. Some students had requests for specific pieces that were placed on a waiting list and had gotten annoyed that it was taking so long to go through said list.

"Well, it _does_ look like a rather long list, doesn't it Lord Malfoy?" asked Jacob McAllister, a prominent businessman and second-most senior board member as he held up the play list for examination.

Malfoy Senior sneered at it before nodding, "Yes, I'm wondering though if the selections were randomly arranged or if there were certain _considerations_ made first?"

Minerva barely restrained herself from rolling her eyes in frustration, "Really, Lucius? Are you so concerned that the muggle born or raised could _possibly_ have better selection of music choices than that of a pureblooded child? Or are you just being your usual annoying self?" McAllister just snorted quietly in amusement, as did two other board members.

"I merely see several prominent children of upstanding families who are being ignored in favor of those… less so."

Minerva's temper nearly lit off. Even so, her response was short and abrupt, "I'd like to remind you that the song selections have _NOTHING_ to do with a person's blood status. The selections have been made based on the alphabetical listing of each student. If there is nothing else, then let's move onto the first House. I believe that would be Hufflepuff?"

Delores then decided to stick her fat face into it, "Hem, hem. That's the House that Harry Potter belongs to? I would be _most_ interested to see what sort of trouble he's been getting into. The-Boy-Who-Lived and all…"

Minerva whirled around to face Delores, "I'll remind you that Harry Potter is a model student and a talented author, inventor and also the one who ultimately defeated You-Know-Who."

"Yes, yes," Delores waved her pudgy hand dismissively, "Let's get on with this shall we? I want to see and hear what that little brat has been doing with his fame. He's probably the one who has been distributing that subversive music, wouldn't you agree Lord Malfoy?" Lucius nodded in agreement and with an oily smirk on his face.

* * *

The group entered the Hufflepuff Common Room and were faced by a multitude of students either studying at the tables or on couches. Some of them were seated around a few record players wearing headphones so they wouldn't disturb the others. A couple of the board members approached the ones listening to music and asked them which music was being played.

"Beethoven's 'Fur Elise.' Good song choice," one board member commented.

Delores, in the meantime, had spotted Harry sitting on one of the couches reading a textbook and taking notes. Grabbing the book out of his hands and ignoring his squawks of protest, she waved her wand over the book trying to dispel any enchantments that she thought he may have put on it to hide his potentially subversive notes and plans. Unfortunately for her, there was nothing hidden or enchanted. She dropped the book back onto the couch and glared at Harry.

"Where are those disgusting muggle songs you've been giving out to the other students?" she screeched, "I know that you've been doing something illegal to undermine the Ministry!"

Harry glanced at Minerva and the rest of the gathered students in confusion, "Huh? I'm not the one who chooses the music. My talents lie in Potions."

"LIAR! Who is the miscreant that has been trying to pervert our precious children's minds with that horrid muggle noise? I know that you had something to do with it!"

Harry turned to the others again, "Was there something wrong with the music we listened to at dinner? I thought it was rather nice."

Delores grabbed his face, "You know full well what I'm referring to, you half-blood brat!"

Just then she jumped back as a stinging hex hit her hand. Delores whirled towards the source of the hex and glared at Minerva who was lowering her wand.

"I'll thank you for not mishandling and abusing my students, Delores. Mr. Potter has already answered you despite not needing to. If you cannot comport yourself in a civilized manner, you will be forcibly escorted off the grounds." Minerva growled menacingly.

* * *

All but two of the board members and Umbridge finally left the castle after touring through all four of the Houses trying to find _some_ sign that illicit types of muggle music were being played. The remaining two turned back and found Minerva in her office taking solace with a dram of whiskey.

"Quite the performance, if I do say so myself," commented Lady Marie Colombe, "Now that the more…conservative members have left, could we speak with the true 'ring leader' about the songs that were brought in? I promise you that it won't get past the two of us."

Minerva thought about it for a moment before sending for Luna. When she arrived, Luna merely glanced at Lady Colombe and Lord Ian Edgewater before nodding and calling for a castle-elf to bring a record player and the records titled, 'Uptown Funk' by Bruno Mars and 'Switch' by Will Smith.

It turned out that Lady Colombe was the one picked for 'Switch' and Lord Edgewater got 'Uptown Funk.'

"So this is what all the fuss is about?" asked Lord Edgewater who merely shook his head in exasperation and chuckled at the memory of Lady Colombe dancing to her Song, "The students and staff are paired up with the Songs Heard by Miss Lovegood here? I have no problems with this and I think it would be beneficial to continue this practice. Especially the instrumental classical songs at mealtimes."

Lady Colombe grinned and nodded in agreement, "Yes, it's so nice to see everyone relaxed and calm. I frankly don't know who it could've been to inform Madam Umbridge that there was something…subversive. Though in her deluded mind, birds chirping in the trees could be considered subversive. Well, Headmistress you have our permission to continue doing what it is you're doing here; and Miss Lovegood? If you have any suggestions for this year's Ministry Yule Ball, I'd greatly appreciate it. Send me an owl when you have your play list recommendations."

Lord Edgewater had a curious look on his face, "Miss Lovegood? Just out of curiosity, what is Madam Umbridge's Song?"

Luna made a disgusted face, "It's not a nice Song. It's quite fitting and I'm not sure that it should be heard."

"Please? I suspect it would be something creepy and vicious but I would like to know."

Luna sighed before requesting the record be brought by one of the elves. After it arrived, Luna set it up and handed Lord Edgewater a set of earphones, "I have no desire to listen to the Song. It's quite disturbing and I don't want nightmares tonight."

With a now worried look, Lord Edgewater put on the earphones to listen to Delores Umbridge's Song titled 'Kill4Me' by Marilyn Manson. After just a few minutes, he yanked off the headphones and stopped the player; his hands were shaking and his face pale.

"Y-yes, now I understand what you meant, Miss Lovegood. It truly is disturbing and quite fitting to Madam Umbridge," he turned to Lady Colombe, "I think we should go now. I've seen and heard enough to know that whatever delusions Delores has come up with is of no concern."

* * *

_**Meanwhile in Delores' office…** _

Delores sat in her chair after leaving Hogwarts, pondering what had transpired that evening. _'I know that the subversive muggle propaganda and noise was there. Phineas wouldn't lie to me. I'm just going to have to get…creative in my search for the culprit.'_

* * *

Luna got back into the Gryffindor Common Room just in time to see Lavender Brown dancing in a quick style reminiscent of the 'Mashed Potato,' past her singing the lines to Iggy Azalea's 'Fancy.' She giggled as the Second year sashayed up to Dean Thomas who was 'rocking' out to Will Smith's 'Getting Jiggy With It' over at the Common Room's Music Center while Parvati Patil was howling with laughter at the sight of her best friend getting all frisky and making Dean blush.

Luna approached Neville who was shaking his head at the antics of the others. It wasn't surprising that they were acting like this; after all, they had just survived a mini-Inquisition by the Ministry's most notorious and in some opinions, most vicious member. Even the school's Board of Governor's didn't inspire the kind of psychological terror that Umbridge seemed to embody.

"Have they been at this long?" She asked motioning towards the two dancers and Parvati.

"Not long, they just started about five minutes ago. I think it was one of the older years that suggested that we look up and start playing our own personal theme songs to blow off some steam and relax. I think the results speak for themselves."

Luna nodded in understanding, "That…woman. The things I Saw were frightening to say the least. How no one has ever thought of running a background check on her, I'll never understand. I wonder if there is anyone in the DMLE that I could speak to about running a quiet investigation in some of her dealings?"

Neville looked at her in askance, "Are you sure that's wise? I mean, she was here to try and ferret out who it was that brought in all of… what did they call it? Oh, yeah. _'Illegal and subversive muggle propaganda lies.'_ You're lucky that everyone, or at least nearly everyone is enthusiastic about your Gift and what you've brought to this school. I suggest that you leave it well enough alone or barring that, contact Professor Lupin who can then alert the Headmistress."

Luna thought about it and slipped into a Trance to trace the Strings along the possibilities. She Saw many outcomes, none of which were really appealing at that moment in time. She did See one String that if she laid low until the end of this school year, it would allow for Umbridge to be caught in her own web of lies and evil manipulations. When she came back to the present, she blinked at the realization that Ginny, Neville and a few others were staring at her worriedly.

"Luna? Are you okay?" asked Ginny in a concerned tone, "You seemed to have blanked out there for a moment and wouldn't respond to anything."

Luna took and released a slow deep breath, "I'm fine Ginny. I was merely tracing the Strings to See what possible outcomes there could be to alerting the authorities to the problem that is Madam Umbridge."

"So… you just staring off into space with your eyes all glazed over is normal?" bubbled Lavender. Luna nodded yes, "Wow. That's impressive. I've heard of Seers, this school even has one as the Divination Professor but to see it in action is incredible! You can actively trigger the Trance?" Luna pulled back a bit from the onslaught of questions from the curious older girl.

"Yes, I've been able to do it since I was nine years old. I suspect it was because of the Sundown Skippers that were hovering around when my mother died. They're known to enhance latent abilities." Luna replied in a strained voice.

"Sundown Skippers? I've never heard of them?" inquired Parvati gently, "Are they listed on those cards you've been creating?"

Luna hesitated briefly and took a deep breath before pursing her lips in thought, "No, and that's a good idea. I should have at least a listing of potential creatures to be made into the cards. Thank you Parvati, I shall get on that right away." She then hurriedly got up and skipped out of the room.

Neville in the meantime had watched the interactions between Luna and the others and noticed a slight tension when Lavender loaded all those questions onto the younger girl. He held his thoughts and opinions to himself. Later, he figured when everyone had calmed down, he'd question her about it.

* * *

_**22 November 1992** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**We had a visit from the Senior Undersecretary to the Minister for Magic, Delores Umbridge. Wow, what an evil woman… though by the looks of her, I'd swear there must have been an unholy…something…between one of her parents and a toad. Shudder! I don't want to think about what could've happened if she had found out that I was the one responsible for bringing the music to the school.** _

_**She scares me…** _

* * *

It was nearing the end of November when Neville finally approached Luna and asked her to accompany him on their first date.

"Luna? Would you like to go on a date with me this Saturday? I know a great place in Greenhouse One where we could be alone and get to know one another."

Luna smiled shyly at him before agreeing to the date and location, "I would like that Neville. Would you like me to bring my record player and something nice to listen to?"

"I think that would be lovely, good idea. So…" he rocked back and forth on his feet uncertainly, "got all your homework done? Need any help with your subjects?"

"Um…no. I think I have all my topics and homework covered. I'm…um, going to… going to check on my Flittering Fusby traps. I'll… uh, see you later," she stammered before blushing and scurrying away, her hair flowing like a golden curtain in the escape.

Neville let out a sigh before hearing Harry's voice come from behind him, "Not easy is it, Neville? Trying to be cool enough to get the girl without going overboard trying to be helpful and coming off as creepy?"

Neville shook his head sadly, "No…no, it's not. But," he perked up a bit; "I _did_ get a date with Luna for this Saturday in Greenhouse One. I think I'll nip down to the kitchens and get a picnic basket for lunch. She's bringing her record player and some music."

"Congratulations, Neville! I'm happy for you. So what sort of things are you going to talk about? Got to keep it simple and safe, especially for a first date," Harry reminded him.

"Well, I was thinking we could talk about our lives before coming to Hogwarts, our passions and dreams for the future. I was going to ask her what living with a phoenix is like… that sort of thing."

"All good. If you get stuck for topics or have questions on how the female mind works, go see Hermione. She may offer some insights that could make your date that much more memorable. In a good way I mean," Harry said.

* * *

_**29 November 1992** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**I have… well, a date with Neville Longbottom today. I can't wait. My god, he's SOOO cute! Especially when he stammers and blushes in my presence. He's very knowledgeable about plant life. That should help with my Chocolate Snorkack cards.** _

* * *

The awaited Saturday arrived and when Luna awoke that morning she opened her eyes and gave a sleepy smile to the flaming red plumage of Fawkes gazing down at her from her bed's headboard.

' _Good morning Luna. Did you sleep well?'_

"I did, Fawkes. Thank you for asking. How have you been? I've not seen you in quite a while. Is your colony still giving you fits?" she asked politely while covering a yawn.

Fawkes trilled in an amused manner, _'Nothing so bad that I couldn't handle it. Generally, it's just the usual guff from the teenagers and chicks just old enough to start roaming around. What's this I hear of a possible courtship between yourself and Neville Longbottom?'_

Luna gave a pout and a bit of a huff, "It's _not_ a courtship, it's just a small get together in Greenhouse One. I know that we'll be on our best behavior. He's bringing lunch, I'm bringing music."

' _Of course. Not a courtship then…I also heard that you had a visit from a certain unpleasant Ministry official and the school board. What happened there?'_

"Oh, she's such a horrid woman! She's upset that 'someone' is spreading what she terms _'illegal and subversive muggle propaganda lies'_ to the students and staff here at the school. Apparently, someone tipped her off but didn't know who specifically it was that brought the music. Headmistress McGonagall believes that Umbridge is convinced that if this music were to become widespread it could lead to all sorts of 'unpleasantness that could upset the delicate nature of our great society.' Or some sort of baloney like that… I Saw things about her and Heard her Song. It's horrifying and truly monstrous, I don't know what I'm going to do about her."

' _What do you think ought to be done with her, keeping in mind that I can't condone any sort of illegal acts.'_

"Oh, I wouldn't do anything illegal. I was thinking of contacting the Director of the DMLE. She's the aunt of Susan Bones from Hufflepuff. Actually, I'm surprised that she hasn't contacted her aunt about this whole nonsense to begin with," replied Luna.

' _Who else could you contact?'_

Luna pondered this for a moment, "Well, I could ask Harry Potter if he still has any pull with the Department of Mysteries. Maybe they could ambush her and dig into her mind to find out what makes her tick and why. Hey! Wait a minute, I could ask _you!_ Would you help me get rid of her?"

Fawkes gave her a phoenix version of a smirk, _'I'm sorry Luna but you know that I can't just get rid of someone in the manner you're thinking of. It would go against my nature.'_

"Oh, pooh. Well…how about…Oooh! I know, how about I hold a press conference. Let everyone know up front what my goal is regarding the introduction of the music and I could have you present while you make it known that a phoenix, a creature of Light, is wholeheartedly approving of what I'm trying to accomplish?" Luna mused excitedly.

' _What would that accomplish? Don't get me wrong, I'd love to help but I fail to see how my presence would be of any help.'_

"Don't you see? If we play your Song while you sing or dance alongside of it. The mere fact that a phoenix cannot be corrupted by any means would signify that my endeavor is pure in nature. I could show that stress levels have fallen tremendously, people are studying and learning better, the works!"

' _Hmmm… It might work. I think you would have to get together with the Headmistress and the other teachers along with a random selection of students to figure out the details of this idea. In the meantime, I think you should get up and ready for your 'not courtship' activity.'_

Luna wrinkled her nose cutely and grinned at him, "Of course."

* * *

Luna and Neville spent the afternoon relaxing in a charming spot in Greenhouse One. It was partially shaded by large leafed plants and was carpeted by soft grass. There was a small stream and waterfall nearby. A couple of chirping birds completed the tranquil scene.

Luna had set up her record player and had the Song ' Claire de Lune' by Debussy playing quietly as they ate their lunch and talked about inconsequential things.

"So Luna, how are those Chocolate Snorkack Cards coming along?" Neville asked.

"So far, pretty good. I've completed the first batch of the Common set. They will consist of Pixies, Cats, Dogs, Rats, Owls, Flobberworms and other single X creatures. I have a couple of Rare and Very Rare cards ready for inclusion as well."

"How many of each in a pack?" he asked curiously.

"I'm thinking that each Chocolate Snorkack pack ought to have the two cards plus the chocolate creature. Each pack will have a random selection of the Common set and the occasional Rare or Very Rare card."

"Mm-hmm. I think that's a good idea. How are you going to mass produce or advertise them?"

"I was planning on word of mouth for the first couple of months as well as advertisements in my daddy's paper _The Quibbler._ I will be talking to the serious collectors here in the castle to get their inputs as well as any insights they may have for improvements. Initial testing was favorable so I want to get into production soon. I don't know whom I want to make them for me. I obviously can't go to the people who make the Chocolate Frog cards," Luna explained.

"Try talking to Harry Potter about manufacturing capabilities. His former primary school teacher is now the manufacturing head at the company that makes his _Potioneer's Assistant._ He might be able to help." Luna nodded thoughtfully.

There was a short silence as they continued to eat and collect their thoughts.

"There was something else I wanted to ask you but I'm afraid as to how you might take it," Neville began nervously and dropped his eyes.

Luna tilted her head and gazed at him with her protuberant silvery eyes, "You want to know why I use imaginary creatures in a conversation?"

Neville's eyes snapped up and locked on hers, "Y-you're not upset are you?"

She smiled at him shyly before reaching out and taking his hand in hers, "No Neville. I'm not upset. I'm actually touched that you care about me enough to worry about it. Well… the reason why I use them is merely for defensive purposes. If I throw one of them into a conversation, it gets people to stop long enough for me to either change the subject or to get away from the situation that causes me to be uncomfortable."

Neville looked at his hand in hers before returning his gaze to her eyes, "I'm glad that it's nothing serious."

"So! Anything new in the world of Neville Longbottom?" she asked brightly as she changed the subject.

The two of them slid into topics of Herbology where it was clear that Neville had his first true love.


	4. Chapter 4

The first Sunday of December blew in along with the winter chill that was characteristic of Scotland. While the bulk of the first years were gearing up for their first major snowball fight of the year, everyone else were eagerly awaiting this month's Magical Music Mystery Medley and the Headmistress did not disappoint.

**Teacher:**

Pomona Sprout – Katy Perry, "Roar"

**Students:**

Fred/George Weasley – Jerry Lee Lewis, "Great Balls of Fire"

Millicent Bulstrode – Aretha Franklin, "Respect"

Wayne Hopkins – Lynyrd Skynrd, "Sweet Home Alabama"

Michael Corner – Maroon 5, "Moves Like Jagger"

" **As a bonus to all, Miss Lovegood and the senior staff have put together a selection of Christmas music that will be broadcast in the halls during the day up to the start of curfew."**

* * *

Harry was busting a gut laughing at the choice of Song for Professor Sprout and for Wayne Hopkins. Both were perfect for each person. Professor Sprout had that genial, happy-to-be-there sort of attitude unless you riled her up or she needed to defend her students; then the claws came out. In his opinion, when push came to shove Pomona Sprout was no spring rose!

Wayne Hopkins on the other hand, was the quintessential 'laid-back, whatever happens' sort of boy. He worked hard and diligently but there was nothing he liked better than to just lay in his hammock back home, kick off his shoes and just spend the day staring up at the blue sky and dream.

After the media sensation surrounding Millicent Bulstrode's children's book, 'Puddles the Clown and The Sad Circus,' people definitely had a lot of respect for the young second year Slytherin student. She was currently writing up her next book of what was being labeled as the 'Young Magical Series,' where the main character would find a need to create and use a different charm or spell to solve a problem. Puddles the Clown had developed the Cheering Charm and Tickling Hex; her next character was going to use the Levitation Charm and Mutato Spell, or the spell to change one thing to another like they did in McGonagall's first class wherein they had to change a matchstick into a needle. She was still getting the occasional first year student coming up to her asking for her autograph.

It was a known fact in Ravenclaw House that Michael Corner loved to dance. It didn't matter which song was playing, he would always find something about it to start tapping his feet or 'getting his groove on.' True to form, he was dancing the moves to the 'Lindy' with Mandy Brocklehurst.

As for the Weasley Twins, everyone agreed that their Song must have been written with them in mind. _Great Balls of Fire, indeed._

* * *

Luna entered the Great Hall a bit later than normal the next Monday after the post owls had delivered the morning mail and the newspapers, and was startled to have Hermione come up to her and give her a big hug for no apparent reason.

"Um, Hermione? I like you and I really appreciate our friendship but I think I should point out that I'm just not into you that way," mused Luna.

Hermione giggled despite the seriousness of what she had to say, "Luna, in the _Daily Prophet_ this morning, there was an article that outed you as the culprit for the ' _subversive muggle propaganda lies._ ' The author of the article is claiming that because your father never recovered from the loss of your mother, he's no longer fit to be a responsible parent and should be remanded to Saint Mungo's for a psychiatric evaluation and for you to become a Ward of the Ministry."

Luna froze at that news. _They wouldn't! Right? Fawkes! I need you!_

Fawkes arrived in a burst of flame and song. He flew down and landed in front of Luna and Hermione.

' _What is it, my dear? What happened that you called for me?'_

Luna grabbed him and wrapped her arms around his feathery body and buried her face into his neck. Tears were streaming down her face. It fell to Hermione to explain what happened. When she finished explaining, Fawkes began crooning to Luna to help calm her fears and to soothe her nerves.

' _I promise you child that no one will be taking you anywhere nor will I allow your father to be remanded to Saint Mungo's. I think what you need to do first and foremost is to write a rebuttal letter to the_ Daily Prophet _and explain the truth to them. Invite their reporters to come to the school to witness what an ordinary day is like here, immersed in the joy and laughter with music in all corners. Invite the Minister for Magic, the Director of Magical Law Enforcement and the School Board. Let them see and hear everything. Get ahead of this negativity, Luna.'_

Minerva came down from the Teacher's Table and approached Luna, Hermione and Fawkes. She 'heard' what Fawkes said to Luna through the general mental link that the phoenix shared with the Headmistress.

"Miss Lovegood, Fawkes is correct. Go get something to write with and I will help you draft the letter to the _Daily Prophet_ editors," She then addressed everyone in the Great Hall, "I want everyone here to write to your parents or guardians. Explain to them what life has been like since we've started playing the music here at the castle. Miss Lovegood has brought so much joy and happiness to this school that I believe that if the Ministry or the school board were to try to shut it down, they'd have a revolt on their hands."

* * *

_**At the Ministry for Magic, Delores Umbridge's office…** _

Delores was sitting at her desk, gloating about the article that had been published in the _Daily Prophet_. She was glad that she had taken Phineas' suggestion and used a Ministry elf to steal one of the records from the school's collection. It was a disgusting piece in her opinion that she was sure would cause an unnatural desire to behave in immoral behavior and suggestive thinking. Besides, what kind of name was 'LMFAO?' What did that stand for? She knew it was an acronym for something, probably something subversive.

She had been certain that her investigation would flush out the perpetrator of that nascent muggle music insurrection at Hogwarts and she was right. Luna Lovegood, first year student of Gryffindor House. It was a shame that the girl was a pureblood. _'Blood traitor, no doubt.'_ She so looked forward to when the brat would become a Ward of the Ministry. At that point, she would step in and become the misbehaving girl's guardian. Then she'd begin educating her in the way a _proper_ witch behaved. If Miss Lovegood resisted… _well, I do have those Blood Quills I've been meaning to use on deserving miscreants…_

* * *

_**8 December 1992** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**I'm so glad that I have friends that are willing to stand up for me against those who would put me down. After that article came out in the last** _ **Daily Prophet** _**, which claimed that my father wasn't fit to raise me and should be remanded to Saint Mungo's; my friends and schoolmates banded together to write a strongly worded letter to the editors and their parents outlining what it is that I've brought and started here at Hogwarts…** _

* * *

**Hogwart's New Magical Musical Mystery Medley**

By Arthur Williams

_It's not everyday when something new and interesting comes out of Hogwarts. That has all changed this year. A first year student, Miss Luna Lovegood of Gryffindor House, had brought with her a selection of music records that has since grown and been matched with nearly everyone in the school. Slow, romantic songs to fast dancing songs; each one paired to a student whose personality matches. Miss Lovegood is the one responsible for bringing the delights of songs written by classical composers such as Mozart, Pachibel, and Tchaikovsky as well as more modern muggle songwriters such as Will Smith, Foo Fighters and Lynyrd Skynrd._

_While just about everyone in the school looks forward to the playing of the month's featured artists and the availability of listening to their own selection of music in the Library Musical Arts Annex, not everyone outside of the school is so happy about the new changes._

" _I think that what is being played is nothing more than insidious muggle propaganda and lies," stated Lucius Malfoy (41) of Wiltshire, "Those songs inspire rebellion and a unhealthy desire to break with proper wizarding traditions and behaviors."_

_This reporter had the opportunity to travel to Hogwarts to speak with Headmistress Minerva McGonagall and Miss Lovegood to hear for myself the quality of these songs and to see if there was any substance to the allegations. Miss Lovegood, who claims to have some Seer capability, looked at me for a moment before pulling out and setting up a record titled, 'Wouldn't It Be Nice?' by a muggle group called 'The Beach Boys.' This reporter has to admit that it's a catchy tune and got me nodding along. It brought up memories of spending time with my long-time girlfriend before she and her family moved after the last break out of conflict._

_It has also come to this reporter's attention that since the introduction of playing music in the halls and during the monthly attendances in the Great Hall, test scores have dramatically risen and aggressive behaviors have significantly dropped. There are students from all four Houses getting together and bonding over the different choices of music._

_It makes this reporter wonder, if the legendary animosity between the Houses can be overcome with the introduction of music, what other effects could be possible with the expansion of the Hogwarts' Library Musical Arts Annex and introduction of Magical Arts and Crafts?_

* * *

Luna was feeling much happier after that article by Mr. Williams was published. She had students from all years coming up to her and giving a hug and well wishes, even the Slytherins! Not one of them had anything bad to say about the monthly musical medley and even had a few suggestions of their own. She reminded them that they were more than welcome to bring a copy of their selection in and have it placed within the rotation.

She glided down the hallways, swaying and dancing a little bit to the sounds of the random Christmas music that was being played. Even the castle elves and ghosts were getting into the action. The elves had started decorating themselves with little baubles and bells while the ghosts would wish anyone they came into contact with a 'Happy Christmas' or were singing Carols. Even the notoriously grumpy Bloody Baron would give out a gruff response. Peeves the Poltergeist took great pleasure in coming up with Christmas-related pranks to pull on the students and staff as well as belting out rude versions of the ghost's Carols.

* * *

That afternoon during lunch, Luna was sitting with Harry, Hermione and Neville. They were discussing their upcoming plans for the holidays. Harry was telling them about the tree that Sirius had planned on getting for the sitting room and the 'adventures' he had gotten himself into obtaining it. It had the others in stitches from laughing so much.

"Harry?" began Luna, "Would you happen to have a Christmas-related potion that we could use on the staff and other students?"

Harry pursed his lips in thought, "What sort of effects do you want it to have?"

"I was thinking that it would cause the person to take on the appearance of a Christmas tree if they were to be hit with a Tickling hex?" she offered.

Harry put on a thoughtful look, "It _might_ be possible to do that. Whom do you want it to affect?"

"Everyone. I think if it were to be added to the morning tea or juice it would get nearly everyone. Then we could hit them with a couple of Tickling hexes and let the knowledge spread about how to get the others to change," Luna explained.

Hermione laughed at the idea, "I think it's a brilliant idea! What do you say Harry?"

Harry hemmed and hawed for a moment before agreeing to the plan. He and Hermione then brought out their _Assistant's_ and began assembling the potion.

* * *

Neville was sitting in the Gryffindor Common Room studying for an upcoming Charms test when Ronald Weasley approached him, chessboard in hand.

"Hey Neville! Wanna come play chess with me?"

"No, Ron. I have a Charms test to study for and I would suspect that you do as well."

"Awww, but that test isn't until next week! Come on, just one game?" Ron pleaded, though in Neville's mind, it was a whine.

"Ron? I have access to Harry's potion stores. Do you _really_ want to continue to annoy me?" Neville said with a threatening glare.

Ron's face immediately paled and the twit shook his head quickly before vacating the room.

"Good job there, Neville," called out one of the Weasley Twins from where they were sitting, "We're going to have to remember that threat!"

"I think I'm going to need to put a Ron Weasley specific _Notice-Me-Not_ Charm on myself so I can study in peace," Neville groused.

The Twins just chuckled and went back to what they were doing.

* * *

Harry was busy in the Hufflepuff Potion's Laboratory that same evening. Hermione was busy helping him as well. She was preparing the ingredients for the Christmas potion prank. Finely chopped up, fresh pine needles were being collected in one pile, the cutting board was then cleaned to prevent cross-contamination. Next she began distilling cinnamon sticks to get the oils. While that was happening, Harry was boiling sliced oranges, cloves and cranberries. The whole room was filling with heavenly aromas.

"Harry? Do you have any rosemary?" asked Hermione.

"Um…look in the cabinet to the left. I think I saw some in there. I have no idea if it's recently processed."

Hermione began rummaging around in the cabinet for the rosemary and came across the nutmeg. She grabbed the ingredients list to check if it was needed and spotted it. Nodding, she continued her hunt for the rosemary.

Once all the ingredients that needed constant observation were finished being processed, Hermione began getting the cauldrons and tools cleaned for the last step. Harry brought out the final ingredients and a large bowl. He mixed up the base of gelatin, corn starch and water then added the strained contents of the potpourri and added a couple of magical ingredients that would react with the wanded portion of the prank.

"Ok, Hermione. We just let this whole thing simmer for about fifteen minutes then let it cool. It should resemble a thin gruel when done. In the meantime, I thought you'd help me with another recipe. This one would make for nice Christmas gifts."

"Oh? What are they?"

"Magical bath bombs. These are different than the muggle ones that just fizz in water and give off a nice scent."

Hermione smiled, "Ooh, do tell."

"Ok, the base ingredients are the same. We need to add a couple of more ingredients that can't be found outside the magical world," he said.

"What are the properties?"

"Um… let's see. These make complex designs in the water and turn the steam different colors. We can alter the recipe slightly so they make soothing music, gently scrub your body or change the color of the water based on your mood."

"Oh, Merlin I think I'm going to drool. It's a shame that we can't market these to the non-magical world. Yes, let's get started."

* * *

_**9 December 1992** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**I think living in the same house as the Weasley Twins is starting to affect me in ways I could never have imagined! Imagine sweet, adorable me coming up with a prank! I sure hope that Harry will be able to get it to work…** _

* * *

The next morning, Harry approached Luna with a sample phial of the completed Christmas prank potion. He also had a small bag of magical bath bombs and a scrap of parchment.

"Morning, Luna. I have a couple of gifts for you. First, this is a sample of the Christmas prank potion. I want you to test it first and if it meets your specifications then I'll give it to the elves to put in the drinks. The second thing here is a small bag of magical bath bombs. Contrary to their name, they don't explode in contact with bath water. What they do is start to fizz, change the color of the water and steam and gently scrubs your body."

"That's fascinating, Harry. Thank you. What's on the parchment?"

"This is the incantation to use on those you want to trigger the Christmas prank on. I've made a few copies. The wandwork is just a simple swish and flick. The incantation is _Mutare ad Natale._ "

Luna giggled and bounced on her feet, "Ooh! Gimme, gimme, gimme!"

Harry laughed, "Then I'll have to guess that you _don't_ need to test the potion?"

Luna shook her head, her hair flipping back and forth.

"Fine then. I'm off to the kitchens to give the batch to the elves. I'd give it until dinner tonight before trying out the spell."

"How long do the effects last?" she inquired, barely containing a squeal.

"Eh…about four hours but I'll be giving the elves enough to spike the drinks for the rest of the week. Have fun!" He waved as he walked away towards the kitchens.

* * *

Luna was in such a nervous and excited state that she could barely sit still in class and when it was time for dinner, she raced through the halls to get to the Great Hall and pick out a prime seat location. Neville eased up next to her and asked her if he could join her.

"Of course. Oooh, I can't wait for the dinner to be served!" she nearly squealed.

"Uh… is this something I should be worried about?"

She gave him a coy look, "Maaay-beee."

"Uh-oh. Luna Lovegood pulling a prank, now this is something I just _have_ to see."

The rest of the school began filtering in and were seated. The food and drinks were served and the night's musical selection began playing in the background. Neville kept his eye on Luna knowing that there was mayhem in the works.

"So whose your first target, Luna?"

"I was thinking the Weasley Twins."

"Starting big are we? Well, fire away," Neville replied.

So Luna pulled her wand, pointed it at one of the Twins, gave it a swish and flick while saying the incantation _'Mutare ad Natale!'_ The spell hit George (or was it Fred) and caused him to break out in Christmas colors and give off a Christmas potpourri scent. The others around him burst out laughing before they too broke out with the same effect.

Neville was beside himself with laughter, the Twins and those affected were giving him funny looks. He shook his head and held up his hands in supplication. Luna meanwhile was targeting others in the Hall. She caught Harry and Hermione's eye and nodded. They in turn began spelling others at their tables. It only took a few moments before those around the three to overhear the incantation and target their friends or table mates. The Great Hall was rapidly filling with laughter and the sight and smell of Christmas.

* * *

Severus was watching the growing pandemonium with mirth in his eyes. This sort of thing could only be the work of Harry Potter. He caught the boy's eye and with a small gesture inquired as to what set off the prank. Harry motioned to the drink containers then turned back to his meal. Severus pulled out his _Potioneer's Assistant_ and wrote off a quick question to Harry, asking him what was the trigger phrase and wand motion. He read off the response and pulled his wand.

Minerva was trying to maintain a stern expression but was rapidly losing integrity. She had just taken a sip of her tea when she heard Severus whisper something. A moment later, Remus was covered in Christmas colors and emitting a holiday scent. This caused Pomona to laugh out loud and target Filius who then targeted Minerva.

Remus leaned towards the table and stared in shock at Severus. Severus in the meanwhile had a smug smile on his face. _'I finally got to prank a Marauder! I feel complete now.'_ Remus shook his head in exasperation and tried to dispel the effect but to no avail. He glanced back at Severus who pointed to his watch, held up four fingers and made a circular motion to denote hours. Remus grimaced and leaned back in his chair.

It was a very happy and thoroughly scented Luna that crawled into bed that night.

* * *

The events of the prior night which was rapidly going down in history as 'The Great Hogwarts Christmas Prank of 1992' were the talk of the students and staff. Harry was besieged with requests from the population for the recipe to use on friends and family at home. When everyone found out who it was that instigated the Christmas prank, Luna was hailed as an evil genius by the Weasley Twins and dubbed an honorary Marauder.

Harry had written back home to Sirius and explained what had happened and got a request back for a copy of the memory to be played in the family pensieve. He had to go to Remus to learn how to extract and copy the memory but once that was done, he packaged it up and trekked up to the Owlery in search of Hedwig.

"My Lady, would you be interested in a journey to visit my godfather?"

"Hoot."

"Very well then. I have everything ready to go already," he said. He attached the letter and the memory phial to her leg and gave her a kiss and let her take off.

* * *

_**15 December 1992** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**I'm so happy that my prank went so well! The Weasley Twins have declared me to be one of their own. I have no idea as to what that means but… whatever. One more week to go and I can go home to visit Daddy! Squeee! I should also remember to thank Hermione Granger about her offer to come stay with her and her family for a week in the muggle world. I'm sure that it will be fascinating and educational.** _

* * *

It was the week before Christmas break and Luna was in the Library again studying for an upcoming test, this time it was Potions. She had with her a copy of the _Potioneer's Assistant_ which was now required of all new students. Her assignment was to explain the properties of Moondew in the preparation of making the Wiggenweld Potion. As she was writing, she heard Fawkes' voice in her mind.

' _Hello Luna. What are you working on?'_

"I'm working on studying for an upcoming Potion's test. I'm also working on writing up an explanation of the Moondew, which is an ingredient of the Wiggenweld Potion. What are you up to?"

' _Surprisingly enough, I'm not up to anything. I'm monitoring some of the fledglings as they prepare for their first flight. What's this I heard about a epic prank?'_

Luna giggled quietly, "Yes, I came up with the idea but it was Harry Potter and Hermione Granger who figured out the potion itself and the wandwork necessary to trigger the effects. What it does is, once the target has unknowingly ingested the potion which had been previously introduced to the food and drinks of the day, a spell is used to cause the person to break out in Christmas colors and to start smelling like Christmas potpourri."

She could hear Fawkes trilling in amusement, _'Oh, young one! That truly is inspiring! So I imagine the castle now smells like potpourri all over the place?'_

"Oh, yes. Depending on where you are and how many people are in the area, the scent could become quite heavy. My first targets were the infamous Weasley Twins. As a result, I was named an honorary Marauder, whatever that is."

" _Well, if memory serves, the Marauders were a quartet of Gryffindor boys who pranked the students and staff during the years of 1971 to 1978. I believe that one of the boys was Harry Potter's father, another was his godfather and the third was the boy's honorary uncle.'_

"What about the fourth member?"

' _Ah, he was the one who eventually turned against his friends and betrayed Mr. Potter's parents to Lord Voldemort.'_

"May I know their names? I'd like to find out who they were through the Strings."

' _James Potter, Sirius Black, Peter Pettigrew and Remus Lupin.'_

"Professor Lupin? Wow, I had no idea that he was a Marauder though that would explain why no one has been able to prank him. I think I shall look through the Strings after I get my homework and studying done."

' _Wise choice, Luna. If there is nothing else, then I shall let you continue.'_

"Goodbye Fawkes."

"Luna?"

Luna blinked owlishly for a moment before realizing that Ginny Weasley was watching her worriedly.

"I'm sorry Ginny, were you wanting something?"

"You were sitting there with your eyes closed and not responding to me calling your name. I was just about to call for Madam Pomfrey."

"Oh, I was just talking with Fawkes. I was telling him about my part in the Christmas prank that was such a big hit and about the aftermath about it. I told him about your twin brothers naming me an honorary Marauder. He told me about the original Marauders and who they were."

"Really? Wow, I didn't know that he knew about them but then again, the bird _is_ a phoenix. He's probably really old and knows a lot," Ginny rambled a bit at the end, "So. What were you working on before your conversation with Fawkes?"

"Potions. I was trying to figure out how to explain the properties of Moondew and how it affects the Wiggenweld Potion. You?"

"I'm going to get started on my Herbology homework," Ginny replied before getting up again and heading off in search of the book she needed.

* * *

Harry, Hermione and Neville were sitting in one of the glass-enclosed sunrooms they had found one of their usual explorations of the castle. The room was tastefully done in the Art Nouveau style of the 1920s and overlooked the Black Lake and parts of the Forbidden Forest. An elf had just left a tea service when Luna approached.

"Hello everyone. This certainly is a lovely place you've found."

"It is, isn't it?" replied Hermione, "I never knew that Hogwarts had such places. I'd say given the architecture that it was designed either by a muggleborn or raised or a half-blood. Won't you join us?"

"Thank you. I just wanted to share with you that my first batch of Chocolate Snorkack cards are all ready for mass production. Harry, I'd like to thank you again for speaking with your printer about getting a small production run made," she said as she sat down on one of the lounge chairs.

Harry waved it off, "It was no problem, Luna. I'm always willing to help out with a promising enterprise. The current Chocolate Frog cards are rather boring. You only get a certain number of historical witches or wizards and in my opinion, the creatures you feature are _way_ more interesting."

Neville turned to Luna, "Could you give us an example as to what will be featured in your cards?"

She nodded, "I'm following the Ministry Classifications of X through XXXXX for magical and mundane creatures though there will be a special category for the cryptomagizoology. Those will be the One of A Kind cards and display creatures like the Crumple-horned Snorkack, Flittering Busbys, Blibbering Humdingers and many others that my father and I have searched for over the years."

"So the Common Set will be the creatures of the Class X and the Exclusive Set will be the Class XXXXX?"

"Yes."

"So when do they go on sale and how much will they cost?"

Luna looked over at Harry who replied, "They go on sale at the usual places that you'd find Chocolate Frog cards and cost the same, about 1 Sickle."

Neville nodded in understanding, "So do you have any on you that I might be able to look at before making up my mind to buy any?"

Luna blushed slightly and smiled shyly, "I do but you're going to have to wait until you get home. I gifted all three of you a complete set of all six classifications for Christmas."

Neville grinned and gave her a big hug; Luna's slight blush went full pink. Hermione chuckled at Luna's predicament.

When the four of them began to break up and head off to other pursuits, Harry pulled Luna aside and asked her if she could find a particular record for him.

"Sure. What's the name of the song and who was the songwriter?"

"The Song is 'Brown-Eyed Girl' and was sung by a guy named 'Van Morrison.'" Harry replied, "I want to learn the lyrics so I can sing it to Hermione for Valentine's Day."

"Awww, that's so sweet Harry," Luna gushed, "Meet me in the Annex after classes and I'll help you look for it. I'm pretty sure I have it and if I don't then I can easily order it to be delivered to your home."

"Thanks Luna."

* * *

_**18 December 1992** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**I found something in the castle that I had no idea even existed. I showed it to my friends and they were impressed! Who knew that Hogwarts offered such activities such as dance, aerobics and water sports?! I wonder why it was stopped? I also thought up what has to be an even better prank than the Christmas potpourri one…** _

* * *

Two days before the school let out for the holidays, Luna was sitting in her Charms class working quietly on a review of the previous lessons. Subconsciously she waved her wand in the patterns of the levitation charm, the sticking charm and a couple of the others. She heard a clearing of a throat and when she looked up, she spotted Professor Flitwick stuck to the ceiling.

"Miss Lovegood? I take it that this was unintentional?"

Luna just blinked owlishly for a moment. _'I did that?'_ "Um, yes professor. I'm sorry; I wasn't paying attention to where my wand was aiming. Uh… let's see. _'Finite Incantatum Gluten!'"_

Professor Flitwick became unstuck to the ceiling but remained in the air. Luna flicked her wand again and lowered him to the ground with the spell _Demitto Corporis._ Once he was back on his own two feet, he dusted himself off, "Well Miss Lovegood, I am giving you five points for an excellent job at spell chain casting and the removal of said charms. It would've been ten points if not for your inattentiveness to your surroundings."

* * *

After classes let out, Luna was wandering through the halls when she heard a fast paced dance song coming from one of the empty classrooms. She stopped by and poked her head in to see several Seventh year students of both boys and girls dancing to LMFAO's song, 'Juicy Wiggle.' Some of the moves they were doing to each other were rather suggestive to say the least so she got out of there quickly. There was no need to interrupt them and disrupt their fun.

She continued her meanderings and eventually came across a room with a strange wooden floor, mirrors on all the walls and a railing about waist height. She entered and found there was another room in the back with little cubby spaces and place for showers and toilets. To the south side, was another door that led to a room with a huge sunken basin. This room was decorated in tiles similar to the conservatory that Harry and Hermione were in a couple of days ago. Luna made a note of where she found this interesting room, determined to share it with the others. _'Maybe Hermione would know what this room is used for.'_

Luna eventually made her way back up to the main floor and caught up with Ginny and her other friends. She spotted Hermione coming down the Grand Staircase and remembered that she wanted to ask about the mystery room she found.

"Hermione! Hi, I was wondering if you were busy? I found a couple of rooms that I don't recognize and was wondering and hoping you'd might help identifying?"

"Sure, I'm not busy. Let's go and see these rooms of yours. Ginny? Did you want to join in?" Ginny nodded.

So they traveled back down to where Luna had found the room and opened the door. Hermione glanced around and declared the room to be an exercise room. She was shown the room with the sunken basin and gave a gasp of surprise.

"Hogwarts has a pool! Oh, this is awesome! It looks like it's big enough to hold at least a hundred people. That other room could be used as a place to practice ballet, lift weights, aerobics… oh, Luna this is wonderful!" She gushed happily.

Ginny had been exploring the poolroom, "But what good is an indoor pool? The water would still be freezing cold in winter."

Hermione shook her head, "No, we could heat the water either with a charm or through the use of a furnace. Oh, this is great! Luna, have you told the Headmistress about this place yet?" Luna shook her head no, "then we need to go see her. This is something that shouldn't wait."

Hermione ushered both of the other two out of the room as fast as she could towards the direction of the Headmistress' office.

* * *

The three girls made their way to the Headmistress' office, stopping long enough to give the password to the gargoyle guardian. Once bid to enter, Hermione motioned for Luna to take the point in the explanation for her discovery.

"Headmistress, I was out wandering earlier when I came across a couple of rooms in a section of the dungeons. One of the rooms had mirrors on all the walls, a strange wooden floor and a wooden railing about waist height. Another room had, what Hermione determined to be a sunken indoor pool. A third room held places for students to store their belongings and to take a bath. Hermione has suggested that I come to you and also to show you where these rooms are."

McGonagall looked over at Hermione and Ginny, the latter was nervously chewing on her hair, "Is this true Miss Granger, Miss Weasley?"

"Yes Headmistress," Hermione replied, "I think that you should investigate the possibilities of having the elves restore and refurbish all the rooms so we can use them again. It would be nice to have a heated pool to exercise and relax in during the winter as well as a place to practice dancing or aerobics in."

Well, that intrigued Minerva. "I think I should see these rooms that you're obviously so enthralled with. Lead the way Miss Lovegood."

Minerva was incredibly impressed with the exercise rooms and the indoor pool. She had a couple elves assigned to repair and maintain them as well as fill up the pool. She instructed the elves to keep the water at a comfortable eighty degrees F. She did tell them not to rush on filling the pool just yet since the students were going to be going home for the holidays and wouldn't be returning until the second of January.

Minerva had an elf bring a spare record player and a random song to be played in the exercise room to test out what kind of acoustics the room had. The elf popped out then brought the player and the record of Fred and George Weasley's Song. The acoustics weren't _too_ bad but it was clear that they needed to be adjusted and the tiling replaced.

* * *

On their way back to the Grand Staircase, Luna got a curious look on her face as a spurious thought hit her. For some reason, she had the sudden urge to let her inner prankster out to play. She turned to Hermione and with a small evil grin asked, "Hermione? Are you allowed to change the Ravenclaw door guardian's riddle?"

"Um… no. That would have to be a prefect. Why?" she responded warily.

"I just thought of a riddle that would have most if not all of Ravenclaw sleeping out in the hallway because they couldn't get in," Luna smirked with a now full-blown evil grin. Ginny laughed nervously.

"Oh? Do tell."

"Change it to this: 'What color is an orange?' Every time they say 'orange' the guardian would deny them because it's asking for the color, not the name of the citrus."

Hermione was flabbergasted; her mouth hanging open before peals of laughter erupted, "Oh, you're right! That is evil and they will be sleeping out in the hallway because of it! Damn, now we _have_ to go find a prefect with a sense of humor!"

They raced up the steps and into the Ravenclaw Common Room where they found Penelope Clearwater writing a letter.

"Penelope?" Hermione began, "Luna here has thought of what has to be not only the world's most difficult riddle for the guardian but also the most evil. If we were to tell you it, would you be willing to have it changed?"

Penelope looked at the three of them with a guarded and wary expression before letting out a slow sigh, "Sure, let's hear the riddle."

"What color is an orange?"

Penelope froze as she thought about it. The obvious answer on the tip of her tongue, "I'm going to guess that 'orange' is _not_ the correct answer?"

Luna shook her head, "That would cause the guardian to respond 'I want the color not the name of the citrus.'"

Penelope grunted, "You're right, Miss Granger. That is a truly evil and complex riddle. Alright, I'll make the changes. But just out of curiosity, what _is_ the proper answer?"

"There is no proper answer but you could use the response of 'They're one and the same.'"

Penelope accepted that.

* * *

_**21 December 1992** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**My password prank was a success! The Ravenclaws spent nearly five hours in the hallway before Professor Flitwick was called in to override the riddle. When the Twins found out about they dropped to their knees and bowed before me claiming that 'They're not worthy!' over and over again. I'm beginning to understand why they enjoy pranking others.** _

* * *

The final day of the school term was a flurry of last minute holiday homework assignments and make up exams. Luna had been talked into giving a lecture on how to go into the muggle world appropriately to search for music stores to get new records and equipment. She gave the impromptu lecture and also reminded all of the magically raised that they had a school _full_ of muggleborn and raised who would most likely be happy to help as long as they were approached and spoken to nicely.

Finally, those who were going home for the holidays were on the train speeding south. Luna was sitting in a compartment leaning up against Neville who had one arm around her shoulders and the other was gently stroking her hair. As a result from the attention, she was slowly dozing off.

Just as her eyes were going to close for the rest of the trip, the door to the compartment was wrenched open. Standing there in the doorway was Draco and the Dense Duo, Crabbe and Goyle.

"You best be careful Lovegood. My father and his friends aren't happy with the rebellion you've been inspiring at school. I wouldn't be surprised if you were to find yourself with new accommodations for the coming year." He sneered before giving, for him at least, an evil grin and oily laugh then leaving with the two bookends in tow.

Harry had a quizzical look on his face, "You know what's really strange about that? Draco himself has been spotted listening to Led Zeppelin and Queens of the Stone Age. It's strange that he would have this attitude about reporting Luna to his dad about a so-called 'rebellion' when he's just as guilty as anyone else for listening and being 'corrupted by muggle propaganda and lies.'

"Luna, don't worry. Between Fawkes, myself, Harry and Hermione you won't have any problems as to where to stay should that threat be real. I really doubt it as well. You know how that blonde ponce is," Neville replied soothingly.

Luna just slowly nodded her head sadly, "I know but it's still scary. What if they try to obliviate me? Or put me into a coma?"

"Then they would be the ones responsible for creating the biggest mutiny and rebellion the likes of which this country has seen in centuries."

"Mmm-hmmm…"

"Tell you what. Why not go into one of your Trances and See what is real and what isn't? At least then you'll know." Neville said soothingly.

She looked up at him with her silvery eyes and gave him a small smile. Neville just kissed her on her forehead and repositioned her so she would be more comfortable while in a Trance.

* * *

By the time the train pulled into King's Cross, Luna had Seen what she needed to know that Draco was just trying to scare her and there was no actual threat of her being removed.

As they were finding their families, Luna spotted Susan Bones and hurried over to her.

"Susan Bones? Hi, I just wanted to give you a suggestion for a gift to your aunt."

Susan's eyes lit up, "Something musical I hope?"

Luna nodded and smiled, "The artist's name is Adele and the Song is 'Rumor Has It.'"

Susan squealed and hugged Luna, "Thank you so much for what you've given the school and I hope you have a wonderful Christmas. I hope to see you when we get back."

"Hey! Luna Lovegood!" She turned at the sound of her name, spotting the Weasley Twins waving her over to them.

"Listen, we wanted…" Fred ( _George?)_

"…to thank you for our Song." George ( _Fred?)_

"Truly inspired piece it was…"

"…but would you have…"

"…something in mind"

"…for our parents?" they finished.

Luna thought for a moment before letting her eyes glaze over. When she came back, she grinned at the two of them.

"These two songs could possibly have been written with your parents in mind, especially your mother. The one for your father is written by Chuck Berry and is titled, 'No Particular Place To Go.' The one for your mother is written by The Coasters and is titled, 'Yakety-yak.' I recommend you stop by the music store called 'Sounds of the Universe,' it's located at 7 Broadwick Street, between the Oxford Circus and Tottenham Court Road stops on the Underground. If you get lost, ask someone at either stations to give directions."

"They don't take magical currency do they?"

Luna shook her head no. Just then Harry materialized out of the crowd with Sirius in tow.

"Hi everyone. Luna, I overheard you telling these two about the record store and how to get to it. If you guys don't mind some help, I can go with you and I can pick up some stuff as well." The Twins agreed and went to go find their parents to let them know about the arrangements.

"Hello, Mr. Black," Luna said, "How are you doing?"

"Please, call me Sirius. Mr. Black makes me look for my father." Luna chuckled in response.

"Harry, are you going to the record store to get your godfather his Song?" Harry nodded and swore her to secrecy.

"Shhhh! Don't say anything. Yes, I'm going to go get his Song as well as Remus'."

"Ok Harry. Though you might want to ask the storekeeper for a parody song to get as well."

"Thanks Luna, I'll do that."

* * *

_**In Delores Umbridge's office…** _

"I'm telling you Delores, the girl is just too popular and well protected with that blasted phoenix as a familiar to make a move against," warned Lucius Malfoy, "I know you have your heart set on shutting her up but the sad fact is, unless you have a sneakier way of dealing with the brat you just need to leave her alone."

"Lord Malfoy, I'm surprised at you. You of all people know that this muggle influence is dangerous to our future as a proud and traditional nation. I cannot in good conscious just 'let it go.' I do have one more option and I would recommend that you keep your son off the train for the return to the new school year. You might want to inform your other colleagues as well."

"What are you planning to use, Delores?"

"I think it would be best to introduce a little…fear to the little brats as they ride back to the castle. Should any of them lose their soul to the fear, well…"

* * *

_**26 December 1992** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**Oh Merlin! The muggles have us beat when it comes to anything fun and exciting! I thought that the music was the only thing but…WOW! They don't need magic to fix their troubles, they get along fine without it and have many solutions that we magicals would just wave our wand at and never think about…** _

* * *

Luna was having a grand time on her holidays. Prior to leaving the school she had been invited to spend at least a couple of days after Christmas with Hermione Granger in the muggle world. Everywhere she turned there were revelations and surprises of just about everything! The television, the appliances in the kitchen, the Granger's car, and the list went on! Luna even got to take a trip with Hermione who had also invited Harry and Neville to join her to the cinema to see the latest movies. Even the food was incredible! She got to experience things like pizza, hamburgers and fizzy drinks.

When she looked back on her vacation and thought about everything she had seen or experienced, it made her realize that most magically born and raised kids were sheltered from the wider world. Seeing and experiencing muggle London with her own eyes made her wonder if perhaps she should've brought a Calming Draught! They started their first day simply; breakfast at the Granger's consisted of the usual English dishes after which she got her first taste of muggle appliances. The electric dishwasher was kind of noisy and startled her when it got started. The blender, electric stovetop and the refrigerator intrigued her. _Maybe I ought to be writing this all down? It would make an interesting story for_ The Quibbler. She asked Mrs. Granger to wait a moment so she could grab a pad and quill so she could take notes about everything. Mrs. Granger smiled and motioned to the countertop where a pad of paper and a pen were sitting.

The pen was _another_ revelation! _Merlin! I'm going to be writing forever if this keeps up!_

"Mrs. Granger? Do all of these pens come loaded with ink?"

"Yes, plus you can get them in different colors. There's black, blue, green, red and purple available. I've also seen some that have glitter in them. I think we have a couple of red ones around here somewhere."

' _Purple? Glitter? I'm in heaven!'_ She took a moment to center herself, "Ok, you were explaining how the dishwasher works?"

* * *

Neville arrived about ten minutes later with Harry. Harry explained that Neville flooed over to his godfather's place and then they caught the Knight Bus.

"If you want a wild ride with no restraints, then that's the mode of transportation I recommend. Otherwise, don't," he stated as he wiped his glasses off. Neville just laughed as he made his way over to Luna and gave her a hug.

The group was loaded into the car and they began their whirlwind tour of Greater London. They saw Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, and Thames River and stopped at Greenwich Market for dinner. The variety of food stalls was yet _another_ fascination!

"Hey, Hermione. Can you imagine the look on Ron Weasley's face if he were ever brought here amongst all these food stalls?" asked Harry as he leaned over to grab a napkin from a dispenser.

Hermione gave a visible shudder, "Please Harry, I'm trying to eat here. That's a horrible image you're bringing up."

All four laughed in response.

* * *

The next day was spent at a store called Harrods. This is where both magically raised kids had their minds really blown! It was only one store but there were seven floors containing incredible treasures from as small as a child's hairclip all the way up to the furniture and decorations to fill entire rooms at home! This one store was bigger than all of Diagon Alley and the shops of Hogsmeade combined. Hermione said that when night fell, it got even better because of all the lights on the outside. Luna and Neville were astounded by how bright it was _inside_. The shops in Diagon Alley were nowhere near as bright as this! It was a tour of the third floor that Neville called out to Harry.

"Harry? I think I need to sit down for a while, I'm going through sensory overload."

"Ok, no problem Neville. There's a bench over there. Luna? How are you holding up?" Harry asked.

"I'm fine… well, my eyes feel like they're going to fall out of their sockets but I think I can continue."

"Luna, take a break. We'll be here all day so there's no rush." Harry replied as he guided her to a bench, Neville just flopped down and leaned up against a wall sighing in relief.

Even though she was sitting on a comfortable bench there were still sights, sounds and smells abundant to distract her. She turned to Hermione and asked her if it was like this all the time.

"Well no, not _all_ the time. They redecorate about a week or so before the different holidays or seasons like Valentine's Day, Halloween, Back to School, springtime, summertime and things like that. The reason why I brought you today were to take advantage of the post-Christmas sales."

While the girls were chatting about the things that they'd seen, the boys were having a similar conversation.

"I'm having a difficult time wrapping my mind around the quality and selection in this place. How am I supposed to go back to Diagon Alley and not be depressed?" Neville pondered out loud.

Harry just chuckled at his friend's predicament, "I know right? That was pretty much how I felt when I first stepped foot in the magical side. Everything looks so quaint in comparison to the muggle side. The worst part is that magical Britain is pretty much the _only_ developed nation in the world that still uses candles for illumination or owls for communication. I have a couple of potioneer acquaintances in the United States that have sent pictures of what their magical shopping zones are like and frankly, you'd never be able to tell them apart from this store."

Neville shook his head in exasperation and disbelief and motioned with his hands at everything in front of him, "How are we supposed to compete with knowledge like that?"

"What I'd love to do is bring in the movers and shakers of magical Britain here to Harrods and to other well-known spots around London to show them just what they're missing by staying in the past," mused Harry.

"It'll never happen. Sure, you can bring them here but they're so stuck in their ways that it would take the second coming of Merlin himself to get them to accept that change is inevitable," interjected Hermione, "Ok, Luna and I will be heading off again to go see some more of the girls' clothing. Shall we meet up in the store's cafeteria at about noon?"

Harry and Neville agreed and so the two groups split up again. The girls to the clothing section; the boys went to experience the electronics department.

Neville spotted some electric lamps in one aisle and picked one up to examine. He spotted Harry coming around the corner and called out to him.

"Hey Harry, you're pretty knowledgeable with Runes and the like right?" Harry nodded, "You think you could come up with something that would allow me to use this back at school?"

"Probably. I can just use the array that powers the _Assistant_ and tie in a 'Null-space array' to prevent the ambient magic from shorting out the light bulb. Why? You thinking of using this to study with?"

"Yeah, my eyes start hurting after a while trying to read by candlelight or by the fireplace. Can you imagine the look on everyone's face when I use this?"

Harry just grinned in response.

* * *

On the ride home, both Neville and Luna were chattering away to Mrs. Granger about the things they experienced and bought. Neville was showing off the lamp he had gotten and when Hermione questioned him on whether or not it would be a violation of the Secrecy Statute, Harry interjected that it only applied if he were to take the lamp and cut off the cord, use it then send it back into the muggle world.

"It's the same with anything that should be using electrical power but can't be plugged in and also doesn't have a space for batteries nor does it have a solar panel. Imagine doing what we're planning on a refrigerator. If a muggle were to investigate and see that it's operating without a power cord, then yes, you've violated the Statute. By leaving the cord attached and just etching the arrays to the underside of the base, who would know?"

"Oh! That would make sense. Now I'm wondering why more muggle devices aren't modified like that?" Hermione exclaimed.

"Remember what I said last year about magic and logic? Also, remember that demonstration we held last year?" Harry grinned.

"Yeah, I forgot."

Harry then reached into his shopping bag and pulled out what at first glance, looked like two fairly thick magazines with glossy pages.

"Here Neville, Luna. I picked these up as well for the both of you. It's the Spring/Summer catalog for Harrods."

Both kids accepted the catalogs with starry eyes like they were handed the keys to Atlantis.

"You should really be interested to know Neville, that Harrods has a gardening section. It starts on page 394." Neville quickly turned to the page and his eyes practically bugged out of his head. He wasn't heard from for the rest of the car ride.

Luna on the other hand was entranced by the sheer amount of content shown on the pages.

"How would I go about ordering these thing? I'm guessing that they don't have Owl Order?"

Hermione leaned over to see what Luna was talking about, "No, but the Royal Mail Service has muggleborns who keep an eye out for packages going to the magical side and reroute them to the Owl Post Office."

When she finally got back home in Ottery St. Catchpole, Luna spent the rest of her holiday writing up the first of what would turn out to be a seven-part mini-series of what life was like living like an average muggle in Greater London. She described everything in great detail and also gave observations and suggestions for those who wished to visit the city themselves.


	5. Chapter 5

_**2 January 1993** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**What a vacation I had! I wrote about my experiences and sent them to Daddy to be printed in the next seven issues as a series. I'm also thinking about sending a copy of the articles to the** _ **Daily Prophet** _**. Get a bigger audience that way, though I have no idea if they would even print it given how Daddy is constantly putting them down.** _

_**Harry, Neville and Hermione loved my Chocolate Snorkack card set I gave them for Christmas. Harry told me that his printer sent off the first batch to the stores and they sold out within a couple of hours!** _

_**Have to get ready to take the train North again… Whoa, that felt weird… Something feels like it's going to happen… Something not good…** _

* * *

The holidays quickly drew to a close, which meant heading back to school. Luna was saddened a bit by that but then shook herself out of the somber moment when she met up with Hermione at the train station and the older girl spotted the look on her face. Hermione promised to invite her to visit again come summer break.

"You'll love the summer vacation I've started planning. I won't say anything more but prepare to go home with a tan and a whole new series of stories to write." She said with a sly look.

A couple of people greeted her after they passed through the barrier and onto the platform and complimented her on the Chocolate Snorkack cards that were available in Flourish and Blott's as well as Honeyduke's. They also asked when the next series were going to be available. She replied that the next batch of cards was going to be run starting in February.

They were about an hour from the departure time, sitting in the carriage compartment when Luna began to experience an uneasy feeling. It wasn't anything specific but just something that felt… off. She tried to enter into a Trance to trace the String that was causing the odd feeling but was too distracted by all the other people showing up and talking about their holidays.

She turned to Harry who was speaking with Susan Bones and asked him if he had his _Assistant_ with him.

"It's in my book bag. Why?"

"I've been having this weird feeling come over me since I got on the train. I'm afraid something is going to happen while we're heading back to the school. Does the _Assistant_ have an emergency contact feature?"

"No, nothing like an alarm that sounds or anything though that is a good idea for a future version. Do you want me to send an alert to the school about this feeling of yours?"

Luna got a pinched look on her face as she deliberated whether or not she should do it.

Harry spoke up again, "Luna, I trust your insights. If what you're feeling is true then advance warning is a good thing. If nothing happens, then so be it."

Luna nodded in acquiescence, "Yes, send a message to the castle alerting them to the possibility that the train is going to be attacked or harmed in some way. Tell them that I didn't get a _specific_ vision but just a general feeling of being cold and afraid."

Harry patted her on the shoulder as he stood up to retrieve his book bag from the overhead rack, "Don't worry Luna. Like I said, I trust your feelings."

Harry opened his _Assistant_ to the 'Communications' page and wrote out a message to Professor Snape.

' _Professor, I was told to put the staff on alert. Luna Lovegood received an incomplete vision of the train and its occupants either being attacked or harmed in some way on the trip up to the school. Be advised that all she got from the vision was of being 'cold and afraid.' I recommend contacting Director Bones; maybe she can send a couple of Aurors for the ride north. We have another forty-five minutes before scheduled departure.'_

It took a few minutes before his book began to vibrate.

' _Message received and the Headmistress has been alerted. She's contacting the DMLE right now. You should be seeing Aurors arrive within a few minutes. Thank Miss Lovegood for us.'_

Sure enough, four Senior Aurors arrived ten minutes before the train was scheduled to depart and made their way to the compartment where Luna and the others were sitting.

"Which one of you is Miss Luna Lovegood?" asked Senior Auror Kingsley Shacklebolt.

Luna raised her hand meekly.

Shacklebolt gently smiled at her, "It's okay Miss Lovegood. Could you go into greater detail of what this vision of yours contained?"

"I…I couldn't really See anything. It was almost like everything happy and warm was driven out of me, I could see my mother dying in my arms over and over again. I Heard screaming from the other passengers around me. There was this dead-looking shape that moved in close to me and then…nothing. I woke up at that moment."

The four Aurors glanced at each other worriedly. One pulled out her shield and tapped it with her wand then began hurriedly speaking into it. The other two whispered to Kingsley then left the compartment, heading in opposite directions.

Kingsley turned back to the others, "I'm hoping that this vision won't be coming true. What you just described are the effects that a Dementor has when around people. Senior Auror Albright here is contacting the Director to give her an update of the situation. The other two will be taking up station at the head and tail of the train. Auror Albright and I will be patrolling the compartments until we reach Hogsmeade. For now, try to relax."

* * *

The train departed King's Cross on time as usual and began steaming north. Luna was still distracted despite the others' attempts to keep her occupied. She kept her eyes out the window and occasionally rubbed her arms and shivering.

Kingsley stopped in every now and then just to check up on the occupants and to see if Luna received any more details of the vision. She slipped into a Trance about a half hour later and concentrated on the surroundings of the future event. When she came out of it, she blinked and saw that everyone was watching her expectantly.

Luna looked over at Kingsley and said that the only other detail that she noticed this time was a sound. It sounded like a frog 'ribbiting' in the background. It almost sounded like the frog was talking to one of the Dementors.

"You couldn't see what this frog looked like?" Luna shook her head no, "That's okay Miss Lovegood. You've done really well in spite of everything."

Kingsley got up to confer quietly with Auror Albright, "She says that there was a sound of what seemed like a frog speaking to a Dementor."

"A _frog?_ "

"That's what she says. A frog…" Kingsley glanced up sharply; an eyebrow rose curiously, "You don't suppose that instead of a _frog,_ it was a _toad_?"

Albright got an ugly look on her face, "Umbridge."

"That's my thinking as well. I'm going to call it in."

* * *

At the halfway mark, the train began slowing. The Aurors went on full alert, the prefects and the Head Boy and Girl began ushering the children into any available compartment regardless of who else was in there. The train came to a screeching halt and then the lights cut out. Screams of shock were heard throughout and the feelings of a deep, bone-chilling cold began to pervade through the compartments.

Shacklebolt spotted the Dementor as it glided onboard near where Luna and her friends were located.

"Halt! I am Senior Auror Kingsley Shacklebolt of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. I order you to return to Azkaban immediately!" he commanded of the demon.

The Dementor hovered for a moment, apparently trying to decide whether or not to comply. Kingsley decided for it. He pulled out his wand and cast _'Expecto Patronum!'_

A silvery lynx sprang forth and attacked the Dementor. The demon screeched in apparent pain and hurriedly left the train. The lights came back on and the temperature came back to normal. He sent another patronus to the driver of the locomotive to put on speed to Hogsmeade. A third patronus was sent to Hogwarts to alert the staff there that they were safe and would arrive as soon as possible.

The Aurors, prefects and the Head Boy and Girl liberated all the chocolate they could get from the Honeyduke's Express lady and started passing out the candies to the students to help ward off the effects from the Dementor. Luna dug into her own bag and handed out what Chocolate Snorkacks she had to the kids in her compartment.

When the train pulled into the station, Madam Pomfrey and several other teachers were on hand to assist with any injuries or to calm the frightened students. The Aurors met up with Minerva and Amelia Bones, who had arrived to get an onsite report, and described what took place.

"It appeared to hesitate before I sent my patronus after it," stated Kingsley, "It was almost like it was weighing its options to dispute my authority in regards to whatever its orders were."

The other three agreed with the same assessment. Minerva turned and asked Amelia if there was any proof that the demon was sent by someone in the Ministry or it was a rogue.

"As of right now, I'm treating it as a rogue. I'm investigating this case quietly because if the allegations are true and it was Umbridge that sent the Dementor then I'm going to need an airtight case before I can prosecute. Otherwise, I might as well pack my things, she's too well connected either from blackmail or bribes," Amelia replied.

"Very well, Amelia. Well if you all excuse me, I need to get the school back in gear," Minerva finished. The Aurors and Amelia nodded and they left as well.

* * *

Minerva needed something to get everyone's mind off the experience with the Dementors. She looked amongst the incoming crowd and spotted Luna as the girl was walking up the front steps holding hands with Neville Longbottom. _Now there's a pair of students I'm happy to see together._

"Miss Lovegood? I was hoping that you might have a selection for something lighthearted in the classical music genre. I need to get the students' minds off of what happened earlier on the train. Do you have anything in mind?"

Luna paused and let her eyes glaze over a bit. When she came back to normal, she gave a small smile and nodded. Giving Neville a brief hug, she sped off at a quick trot towards the Musical Annex. A few minutes later, she came running back with a record in hand. She quickly got it setup on the record player that had been permanently installed on it's own plinth in the Great Hall.

Minerva leaned over to see what was going to be played. The title read, 'Die Fiedermaus Overture' by Johann Strauss II. She glanced over at Luna, "You're sure?" Luna just nodded.

Minerva stood up and cast a _Sonorous_ on herself and made her welcome back speech, **"Welcome back to a new year everyone. I hope that you all had a pleasant time with your families or guardians. I would also hope that you do not allow the bad experience you had on the train earlier put you off from starting the new school term with vigor and a continuing desire to learn.**

**As a treat for you all to help get your minds off of what happened earlier, I had Miss Luna Lovegood select a more lighthearted Song. So without further ado, Miss Lovegood?"** The music began playing. **"Let the Welcome Back Feast begin!"**

Luna sat down at the Gryffindor table alongside Neville and began pulling food onto her plate. There were a couple of others who hadn't spoken to her earlier in the day, were now complimenting her on her choice of music and also for the Chocolate Snorkack cards.

"Those cards are an absolute hoot, Luna," said Dean Thomas, "Did you work with Hermione to find out the details from the Pixies?" Luna mutely nodded in response, her mouth too full to speak normally.

"I heard that Flourish and Blott's sold out of their supply within three days of the initial offer," stated Seamus Finnegan, "I was hoping to get a couple of new packs but the 'Luck of the Irish' just wasn't with me that day."

Luna finally swallowed and replied that the printer was still setting up a section to produce the cards in even larger quantities. She had to admit that even she was surprised at how well received the cards were.

"So what is it specifically that you two liked about the cards?"

Both Dean and Seamus replied that it was the new and interesting layout of the cards, the picture used and the quick information bits on the reverse side.

"Honestly, the cards hold more information and statistics about the particular animal than the Chocolate Frog cards do about the famous witches and wizards. The Chocolate Frog cards only have about three or four bits of information compared to the five or six bits that the Snorkacks' have. That makes it more useful in the long run." Dean supplied while Luna was writing quick notes on a small notepad and pen.

Seamus added his opinion; "I like how the ink on the cardstock doesn't smear when I have any chocolate on my fingers. I also like how the box the card and chocolate comes in can be closed and reused multiple times. Was it intentional to create little storage containers to hold multiple cards?"

Luna grinned at that, "Yes, I got the idea while speaking with Hermione, Neville and Harry before the production got started. They had suggested the reusable container idea then and when on the Christmas holiday I was introduced to many wonderful ideas and things while staying at Hermione's house in the muggle world. Her mother introduced me to the wonders of something called 'Tupperware,' which is what they were talking about when we were discussing the packaging problems." Dean nodded sagely, his mother used the same kind of containers, "I started a series of articles about my Christmas holidays that will be appearing in _The Quibbler_ as soon as my father finishes printing about our latest discoveries about the Atlantean Micro-Dragon."

Both Dean and Seamus were interested to hear about the dragon and asked her if she either had a spare copy of the article or if she could get them a subscription form to order one their own. She said she had extras in her trunk and would hand them over after dinner.

* * *

After classes the next day, Luna decided to head out to the greenhouses to see if Neville was willing to help her figure out what sort of plants would be good for attracting a Crumple-horned Snorkack…or maybe just have time for some cuddling. She found him up to his elbows in potting soil.

"Hello Neville," she said dreamily, "what are you working on?"

Neville looked up from his task, "Oh! Hey Luna… nothing much. Just mixing up a new variation of potting soil to make it easier to grow cacti and succulents. What's up with you?"

She lazily reached out and trailed her fingers over one of the softer looking succulents, a crystal blue one with teardrop shaped fleshy leaves, "I came down to see if you wanted to work with me on figuring out what kind of plants would be good for attracting the Crumple-horned Snorkacks or maybe just…cuddle?"

Neville gave a shy smile in return, "Yeah I think I'd like that. Let me go wash my hands and go find a comfortable spot. I know of a bench in Greenhouse Four that I've been meaning to try out."

* * *

When they got into the greenhouse, Neville guided her to the wall up against the castle. There they found a clay bench with cushions on it. A vertical, chest height pillar attached at one end.

Luna tilted her head in puzzlement; motioning to the apparent pillar, "What's the purpose of this part?"

"This is actually a wood fired heater. You see the opening at the base? That's where you light a small fire, feed in twigs or other combustible material. The heat from the fire rises up through a central tube before spilling over and down the inside of the pillar. It's then routed through the inside of the bench before being exhausted out the chimney. The heat from the fire is absorbed by the mass of the bench and slowly radiates it away when the fire dies down. It's was designed and built a couple of years ago by a muggleborn student and is very efficient. There's no smoke once the system heats up and actually gets hot enough to cook food or heat drinks on the top of the pillar." Neville explained.

"How much wood is required to heat up a greenhouse like this?"

"About one cord of wood but even then, it's not recommended to use such big pieces that are traditionally used. If it's thicker than two fingers together, it needs to be trimmed. It also makes a nice roaring sound when it's operating properly. That's why one of its names is a 'Dragon Heater.'

"Neat! This would make an interesting story," she exclaimed as she settled herself onto the cushioned bench.

* * *

Neville was sitting on his favorite chair in the Gryffindor Common Room studying for an upcoming Transfiguration test. He had his textbook, his notes and a fresh notepad and pen that he had bought while on vacation with Harry and Hermione. He also set up the new electric lamp that Harry had modified to run on ambient magical energy. He set it on the side table and clicked it on, the sixty-watt bulb casting a bright cool white light on his book.

' _This is SO much easier to read now! How in the heck did I ever manage to study before this?'_ he thought amusedly and with a bit of chagrin.

"Neville?" interrupted Angelina Johnson, "How did you get that lamp to work? I recognize it being of muggle manufacture and thought that their stuff couldn't work here?"

"Ah, yes normally that would be true but Harry inscribed some of the power and null-space runes that are part of his _Potioneer's Assistant_ on the underside of the base. With those in place, I can now read quite comfortably.

"I can see that. Wow, do you think he'd be willing to get a few more of those?"

"Well, after I'm done here I'll let you borrow my catalog to Harrod's Department store. It has just about everything you could possibly imagine and then some. What you do is fill out the order form, send it to the Owl Post Office. They have a setup where they convert the money to muggle currency and send it on its way. When the order is processed and shipped to you, they have a muggleborn in the Royal Mail Service who intercepts and reroutes the package back to the Owl Post Office."

"Awesome, I'll be over there by the fire with the rest of the team until nine o'clock tonight."

* * *

_**Director Amelia Bones' office, Department of Magical Law Enforcement…** _

Director Bones was reading the latest report into her investigation of the suspected rogue Dementor. _'What there was of an investigation'_ Delores Umbridge, whom she suspected of being the one who ordered the attack of the Hogwarts Express train, was very good at covering her tracks. Amelia wished to all that was holy, that she could get into the toad woman's office and do a proper investigation. Unfortunately, the woman was too closely tied with the Minister and therefore damn near impossible to touch.

Letting out another frustrated sigh and not for the first time wishing she had Miss Lovegood's ability to See things in advance, she dropped the report back onto her desk and leaned back in her chair.

Just then there was a knock on her door.

"Come in!" she barked, she really didn't want any disruptions but she did have a department to run.

Master Auror Alastor Moody came limping into the room, a permanent scowl on his face.

"Amelia," he growled out, "you've been locked away in this office for the past two days now. What's going on?"

"It's this supposed rogue Dementor thing," she said as she waved her hand at the pile of parchment on her desk, "I can't accept the prevailing explanation that a single Dementor just _happened_ to find, board and attempt to Kiss the occupants of a specific compartment of the Express."

Moody grunted in response, "Aye, it does seem impossible. What are you trying to accomplish by holing yourself up like this? I seem to remember a Auror fresh out of the Academy holding group sessions to work on a thorny problem." Amelia smirked back at him.

"The problem these days, I'm no longer sure who is reporting to whom. I'm almost positive that the person responsible for ordering the attack was Umbridge but I have no real proof other than a Vision from an eleven-year-old girl."

Moody just gave another grunt, "Aye, there've been times where I wish I could drag her ugly carcass down to the Veil of Death, push her through and say, 'Oops!'"

Amelia let out a laugh before saying, "Thanks Alastor, I needed that."

Getting up and opening her door, she barked out for Shacklebolt, Robards and Proudfoot to get into her office for a meeting. Once all three men had entered and had a seat, Amelia filled them in and asked them to take an oath not to discuss any matter with anyone else.

"I trust you all implicitly and it's my hope that our brainstorming session will be the cause of the arrest and incarceration of one Delores Umbridge," she stated simply, "I do not believe that the Dementor attack on the Hogwarts Express back on the opening day of the new school term was a rogue. Something like that just doesn't happen in my opinion. Laid out in front of you are all of the notes, reports and other documentation pertaining to this case. In addition, I have the memories of the students in the targeted compartment on the train. I want each of you to go through it and then we'll have our discussion."

The assembled team including Moody began sifting through the collected information while Amelia sent out an order to have tea and coffee brought to her office. It was going to be a long night.

* * *

The January Magical Musical Mystery Medley was upon the students of Hogwarts and everyone begun flooding into hear the latest round. Long gone were the division of Houses; students were intermingled with each other along the new lines of preferred music genre. Red, blue, yellow and green trim was seen jumbled together amongst the four tables.

" **Welcome everyone to this month's musical selection! I've already listened to the choice for this month's teacher spotlight and I can categorically state that if someone were to tell me a couple of years ago that there was ever a Song that so thoroughly described a person and their teaching style, I'd have recommended a lengthy stay at Saint Mungo's."**

" **So without further ado, here is the Song for none other than Severus Snape!"**

Elvis Presley's song 'A Little Less Conversation' began playing throughout the Hall. The electrified music got a few to jump up and start dancing, Michael Corner being one of them. Severus listened to the lyrics and laughed out loud, _'Yup, this could definitely describe me.'_

After Severus' Song finished and everyone applauded then settled back down into their seats, Minerva got back up and finished the announcing the playlist.

" **Okay! Wasn't that fun? Here is the playlist for the students:"**

Neville Longbottom – Katy Perry, 'Firework'

Harry Potter – Pitbull, 'Fireball'

Terry Boot – Frank Sinatra, 'The way you look tonight'

Miles Bletchley – Lorde, 'Royals'

Miles Bletchley definitely agreed with his Song. Even though he was in Slytherin House, he never felt like one of the aristocracy. Yes, he was ambitious and had cunning and drive to get what he wanted but there were days where it felt like all he wanted to do was to just sit around a table having a couple of drinks with friends without any of the usual politicking that went on in the 'Snake Pit.'

Luna was laughing a bit at the look on Neville's face. The title was perfect for him and according to the stories that were told of his first year, the boy she knew today was the complete opposite of the painfully shy, timid boy of yesteryear.

Everyone was looking at Harry when his song got started. His only response was a sly, knowing grin and he rocked out to the music, his eyes closed. With all of his inventions, the ultimate defeat of the two darkest lords of the past century (one that no one even suspected), you just had to wonder as to just what _else_ was planned in that wonderful brain of his.

Terry had to wonder about his Song. This Frank Sinatra guy was a crooner that was obvious. Terry would do some research later in the week and found that this Sinatra guy had a bit of a debonair attitude and manner of style towards others. Terry could see glimpses of himself in the attitude that Sinatra gave when he sang. While the words of the love song being sung didn't quite gel with his line of thinking, it was the feeling behind it that meshed.

* * *

_**Director Amelia Bones' office, Department of Magical Law Enforcement…** _

It was two weeks after the initial brainstorming session when Shacklebolt had an epiphany.

"Hey Boss?" he quietly asked, "Could we use a house-elf to retrieve the evidence from Umbridge's office?"

Amelia looked at him in askance, "Ummm…maybe? What good would that do?"

"Well, _we_ can't go into her office without a search warrant but the elves? They need to go in to clean and whatnot. What if we were to instruct one to go about its usual activities but when in her office, to keep an eye out for specific items and bring them for inspection?"

Moody shook his head, "The Wizengamot would never allow that evidence to be used."

Shacklebolt hummed on that for a moment before letting a sly smile slide across his face, "What if we were to couch our instructions as 'if you get any sort of injury, even for something as simple as a parchment cut, bring yourself and the offending item to us for inspection. We would have no choice to see what it was that caused the injury to the elf."

Amelia let out a bark-like laugh, "I love it! I know from the elves within my own House, they _love_ loopholes and always try to find something that would allow them a bit of leeway. I say we try it."

Robards suggested that they run it past a trusted barrister first to see if the idea would hold up in a court of law, "After all, if it doesn't work then we risk losing our jobs for nothing."

Amelia wagged her finger in agreement, "Good suggestion. Alright, do we _know_ a trustworthy barrister?"

They thought for a moment until Moody leaned forward, "My latest trainee's father is a barrister. I recommend that we bring her and her father in for a consultation. She may act the fool but in reality is as serious about the job as I am. We use her as a go-between for her father and us. We don't need to give her specifics but give her a general idea as to why we need to speak with her father. Him, on the other hand, could give us a confidentiality oath."

"What's her name?"

"Tonks. Nymphadora Tonks. I believe her father's name is Ted."

"Get her."

Auror Trainee Nymphadora Tonks and her father Ted Tonks walked into Amelia's office two hours later. Well, Mr. Tonks walked in, Nymphadora tripped over the trashcan and stumbled over a chair before finally landing face first onto the couch.

Flipping upright she exclaimed, "I'm alright! No blood, no report!" Amelia and Ted snickered.

Amelia looked at Ted, "This is a normal thing for her I take it?" He just nodded with a long-suffering smirk, "Yep."

Moody just raised his normal eye to the heavens in supplication before shaking his head.

Amelia then brought the meeting back to order, "Mr. Tonks the reason why we brought you here is because we have a potential scenario that we need a legal answer for."

Ted slowly tipped his head thoughtfully, "Go on. What's the situation?"

Amelia took and released a slow deep breath, "We suspect a high ranking employee of organizing the Dementor attack on the Hogwarts Express in the beginning of this month. While we cannot get a search warrant based on our current level of suspicions to search this employee's office, we thought of a way we _might_ be able to use to circumvent those limitations."

"Go on."

"We propose to use one of the house-elves that work here in the Ministry to go through this employee's office as they do their usual cleaning routine but also keep an eye out for specific items. They would then bring said items to us for inspection under the guise of being injured in some way by said item, even if it's as simple as a parchment cut on a finger."

Ted made a face at that, "You run the risk of being slapped with an 'illegal search and seizure' injunction."

"The elf wouldn't be actively _looking_ through anything like cabinets but we all know that things get left out on desks or on shelves. As the elf goes through the room and dusts and whatnot, if there's let's say a wall safe, the elf could claim that the dial banged into its elbow causing numbness in its fingers. We would then be brought into investigate. The safe would then have to be opened to inspect the mechanism. Anything inside would then have to be inspected as part of the operation."

Ted let out a long sigh, "That's splitting things very finely. You still run the risk of the injunction but…I _might_ able to wiggle something like that through the system. Who's the employee, if you don't mind me asking?"

Amelia glanced over at Moody before looking back at Ted, "Delores Umbridge."

Both Nymphadora and her father's jaws dropped in shock!

"Going after The Toad? That's bold. Who was the target, if I may know?"

"We think it was a Miss Luna Lovegood of Gryffindor House. She's eleven and apparently started a musical revolution that's ruffled the indignation of Madam Umbridge for whatever reason."

Nymphadora snorted, "Umbridge doesn't need a reason. You want to rile her up, just do something outside of what she considers 'traditional and proper thoughts and behaviors for the pureblood elite.' I swear she has some sort of personal 'script' that everyone should be following, in her opinion, and anyone that doesn't should be eliminated."

Ted understood that, he had run into people like that over the years, "Have you considered using the Unspeakables to detain her and run one of their mind scans?"

Moody grunted, "I doubt we'd be able to get their attention for something like this."

Amelia pursed her lips for a moment before tapping a finger on the desk, "Now wait a moment, let's think about that. Another person in the compartment with Miss Lovegood was Harry Potter and Neville Longbottom. I know that Augusta would be itching for a chance to get at Umbridge on the political side of things and I know that Mr. Potter had a working relationship with Croaker."

"Two political powerhouses there, Potter and Longbottom," replied Ted, "Isn't Sirius Black Mr. Potter's godfather? He might be persuaded to bring the power of House Black into the fray as well."

They were quiet for a moment before Amelia broke the silence, "Ok, before anything goes through, I'll need to speak with Croaker and see if the Unspeakables would be willing to help. In the meantime Mr. Tonks, I would like to hire you to prepare a case against Delores Umbridge based on whatever we find."

Ted nodded in agreement and stood ready to depart. Nymphadora stood as well, waiting for permission to escort her father out.

Moody said that he would contact Harry Potter and Neville Longbottom to get their views on what happened on the train.

"Good luck everyone," said Amelia.

* * *

_**16 January 1993** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**Have I mentioned before that Neville Longbottom is the most wonderful and thoughtful person in the whole wide world? Oh, Merlin that boy knows how to make my heart pitter-patter! He got me the best gift ever!** _

* * *

It was a bright and clear morning; Luna had just come down into the Gryffindor Common Room when she felt a pair of arms wrap around her waist. She looked up to see Neville sporting a huge grin on his face.

"What's gotten you to be so cheerful this early in the day Neville?" she inquired with a slight tilt of her head while wrapping her own arms around his waist.

"Do I really need a reason to want to give you a hug?" he replied with that maddening smirk on his face.

She just held his gaze for a moment before responding, "You're hiding something. What are you hiding?"

"I obtained something that a friend of mine from another country found on one of his monthly travels. He shipped it out to me and it arrived just last night. I was originally debating to give it to you on Valentine's Day but I don't think I can wait that long."

Luna just pricked up an eyebrow in bemusement and a little bit of curiosity.

"Shall I go get it?"

"Please?"

Neville let go of her and trotted back up the stairs to his dorm room. A few minutes later, he came back down carrying a medium sized crate and put it down at her feet. There was a quiet snuffling noise inside.

Neville took her hands in his and said, "Thanks to your diligence and perseverance in creating those Chocolate Snorkack cards, a friend of mine in Switzerland found this creature that has long been sought after. It turned out that its normal habitat was not a cave-dwelling animal like it had previously been thought to be but rather a burrow, kind of like the badger or other ground-based animal. It also appears to be attracted to the scent of peanut butter."

By this time, nearly all of the occupants of Gryffindor House had gathered around them, watching and listening with growing interest.

"My dear Luna Selene Lovegood; I, Neville Francis Longbottom, do hereby present you with a gift. Your very own… Crumple-Horned Snorkack!"

With that he reached down and pulled the lid off of the crate. Inside was a pale blue-furred creature the shape of a jackrabbit with tiny curled horns jutting up from its head. Luna's response could only be one thing… she fainted.

* * *

When she came to again, she found herself lying on the couch in front of the fireplace with Neville hovering next to her.

"Sorry about that, I guess I should've had you sit down first," he said with chagrin, "Fortunately you were only out for a couple of minutes. You feel up to meeting your Snorkack?"

Luna tentatively nodded, curiosity getting the better of her. Neville reached into the crate and lifted the animal up and gently handed it to her. She could only marvel at the softness of the fur and the cute way it was nuzzling her neck and jaw; its short, rounded ears twitching minutely. She kissed it on the cheek.

"Oh, Merlin… Th-thank you so much Neville. I'm at a loss for words right now. Is it a boy or girl?"

"I think it's a girl but I didn't check too closely."

In small groups, the others crowded around to witness and touch the now legendary animal.

One of the Seventh years turned to Luna, "What are you going to name it?"

Luna slowly shook her head, "I have no idea. I need to find out what gender it is first. Here, help me flip it over to check."

It turned out that the Snorkack was a girl. Once Luna had it resting back on its paws again, she turned back to Neville and asked, "What sort of food did your friend pack into the crate?"

Neville glanced into the crate and said, "Looks like local greens and the remains of a sort-of chewed carrot. How about after breakfast, you and I head down to Professor Kettleburn's office and see what other greens he has available? If nothing else, we could stop by the kitchens and see what sort of salad greens the elves have."

Luna put the Snorkack on the floor to see what it would do as she took her wand and transfigured a piece of parchment into a harness. The Snorkack sniffed around the floor and hopped over to the feet of the nearest person. One sniff and the Snorkack gave the cutest of sneezes in response.

Luna put the transfigured harness around the neck and chest of the Snorkack and tried to lead it around the room. It followed her for a moment before freezing in place, the others in the room suddenly looked around apparently in confusion.

"Hey! Where'd it go? I could've sworn it was right there!" exclaimed Lavender Brown.

Luna looked at her in confusion as well, "It's right here, still attached to the harness. Why? Can't you see it?"

The others shook their heads in negativity, "Luna? Is that you? Where'd _you_ go now?"

Luna moved closer to the others and all of a sudden their heads immediately swiveled as one and locked eyes on her.

"Well, that was interesting," commented Neville, "it would seem that the Snorkack emits a natural sort of disillusionment charm. Luna if you could slowly move back to the creature so we can see what the limits are?"

Luna began sliding back and when she got to within five feet of the animal, she disappeared from view.

"Well, that settles it. A natural defense against predators, I'd imagine. Something for the new edition of the Chocolate Snorkack cards, wouldn't you agree Luna?"

* * *

The Hogwarts' Rumor Mill was legendary in its own right. A secret told at eight am in the topmost tower would be heard by the lowliest creatures in the dungeons by noon the same day at the latest. The news about the Snorkack managed to beat even that record. By the time that Luna got down to the Great Hall, nearly everyone was gathered around to see the illusive creature.

"Well Miss Lovegood, I see that your cards are finally paying off," commented Professor Snape who reached out to touch the Snorkack on its head. The creature sniffed his finger and rubbed its cheek against it.

"I'm still in shock by this wonderful gift from my wonderful Neville," she gushed happily, "I still don't know what to name her."

The others nearest in the crowd started throwing out names, none of which seemed to fit or were just downright silly.

Eventually, the crowd were dispersed by the teachers and Luna sat down to enjoy her breakfast all the while keeping one eye on her new pet and the other adoringly on Neville who just sat there and ate his breakfast with a happy yet mildly smug smile on his face.

* * *

Luna did finally decide on a name for the Snorkack, she named it Nellie. When asked why, she said that it was in honor of Neville who was so _wonderful_ of a person to think of her. Hermione approached her later and suggested that Luna should do a full biological workup of Nellie and submit it to _Magizoology Monthly._

"Just think of what it would mean for you and your father's reputation now that you've been proven correct," Hermione stated, "All of that ridicule and whatnot can now be thrown back in your detractors faces. I'm sure that you've printed things in _The Quibbler_ but this is an _international_ journal! I'm still getting letters from other animal researchers for requests to give seminars on how to speak or translate the languages into something a human can understand."

Luna gave a small grin in response, "It would be nice to be able to do that but I'm not the confrontational kind of person that would hold Nellie up and say 'See? Nyah, nah, nah, nah!' I don't want to be like that."

Hermione patted the younger girl on her shoulder, "I'm not saying that you should be _that_ way but still think about putting together an article."

"I will. It's a good idea."

Hermione decided to change the subject, "So what's the latest from the Ministry regarding the Dementor attack, any word yet on the details?"

Luna shook her head, "I don't know and frankly I don't want to know. As long as whomever it was that did it is caught, I don't care. I have enough to worry about with my upcoming Defense test without having to get mixed up with the going-on in the Ministry."

"Fair enough."

* * *

_**In the Department of Mysteries, Unspeakable Croaker's office…** _

Croaker was speaking to Harry via a special mirror about the very topic that Hermione was curious about.

"So what is it that you need from the Department of Mysteries, Mr. Potter? Another Dark Lord?"

"Hehe, nothing so extravagant as that. No, this is more insidious. Delores Umbridge level of insidious."

"Yeah… that's bad. What happened?"

"Did you hear about the Dementor attack on the Express at the beginning of the new term?"

Croaker hummed in response.

"Well, my friend Luna Lovegood was the one who had a Vision about the attack and had me warn the staff at Hogwarts. They were the ones who alerted the DMLE." Harry then explained the visit the school had from Umbridge and the school board, the Magical Musical Mystery Medley that supposedly didn't fit with Umbridge's liking and the newspaper articles that came out against Luna.

"I can understand that this would be a problem but not exactly the thing for the DoM. This falls into more with the DMLE to solve."

"We understand that sir. All we're hoping is if she's caught, you could do whatever it is you do to find out _why_ she ordered the attack and caused all the other problems."

Croaker nodded thoughtfully at that, "I think that's something we could do. Okay, Mr. Potter. You catch the culprit, we'll handle the interrogation."

"Deal. Thank you, Unspeakable."

* * *

_**18 January 1993** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**I had another one of those Visions again. I'm getting scared; why can't I just have normal dreams like everyone else?** _

* * *

Luna was halfway in the door to her Defense class when another Vision overcame her. When she came to, she found herself lying on a bed in the Infirmary and Neville hovering nearby.

"Luna? How do you feel?" he asked nervously.

"I'm fine, Neville. What happened?"

The Headmistress and school nurse came striding up at that moment, "Miss Lovegood? Do you remember anything from your latest Vision?"

Luna thought for a moment and the memories came flooding back.

_She was standing on a low hill overlooking a valley of miniature buildings and a castle in the background. She could hear the faint sounds of music coming from the valley as well as laughter, joy and life._

_Just then there was the sound of the toad again. It was speaking to another, ordering an attack upon the castle and the surrounding town. The order was to attack with everything you have and leave no one alive._

_She watched as a cloak of darkness spread over the valley. Everywhere it touched, the music died and silence reigned. She screamed for help but there was no one around to hear her plea._

Luna opened her eyes, took one look at Neville, McGonagall and Pomfrey and burst into tears. She relayed what her Vision contained and when she finished, she felt Neville wrap her up in his arms and rock her until she calmed down.

"I can promise you, Miss Lovegood, that your Vision will _NOT_ be coming true," declared Minerva; "I'll be contacting Director Bones right now." She stormed away from the bed and activated the Infirmary's Floo.

Madam Pomfrey handed Luna a Calming Draught and told her to get some rest before heading back to her office. Neville stayed with her until she fell asleep. The Floo activated again and Director Bones and another Auror stepped out of the flames.

"Minerva? What happened?"

"Miss Lovegood had another Vision about a potential Dementor attack against the school and Hogsmeade. I think you need to hear what she said, I can have her give you a copy of the memory…" Minerva looked back at where Luna was now sound asleep in Neville's arms, "Well, maybe you can still retrieve the memory somehow… I need to go put the school on lockdown until I get the all-clear from you."

Director Bones turned to the other Auror and made the decision to have a Healer from Saint Mungo's help out with the memory extraction. Twenty minutes later, it was done without even waking Luna up.

* * *

The moment that Director Bones emerged from the playback of the memory, she began issuing orders to her accompanying Auror.

"Get a team together, Senior level or higher, and secure Umbridge's office. No one in or out. Then send another team to her house and get that secured. If she's in either one, have her arrested and put into solitary confinement and silence her." The Auror nodded and hurried to leave via the Floo.

Amelia turned to Minerva, "I'm going to contact Croaker in the Department of Mysteries to see if he'll help with the interrogation. Do you have any more of that Junior Veritiserum?" Poppy nodded and went to go get it.

"The Junior variant? Why?" asked Minerva.

"Simple, the regular stuff is highly controlled and you need special dispensation to use it on high-level Ministry officials because of whatever secrets they may possess in running the government. The junior variant doesn't have those restrictions because the Wizengamot hasn't gotten around to making any," Amelia replied with an evil grin.

* * *

As a result of Luna's Vision happening in public, Minerva thought it would be a good idea to hold something to take everyone's mind off the possibility of another Dementor attack.

"A ball? What does that mean?" yelped Harry to Hermione.

"It's a dance Harry. You know? Music? Dancing? Food and drinks? That sort of thing?" He just gave a snort of amusement and wrinkled his nose at her.

Harry thought for a moment before giving Hermione a bit of a bow then asking her in a manner as romantically as he could, "Hermione Granger, would you do me the honor of being my date to this ball?"

Hermione giggled and kissed him on the cheek, "Yes Harry. I would love to be your date."

Harry lightly touched the spot where she kissed him then smiled, "Well… Do you… umm… do you know how to dance?"

Hermione just kind of bobbled her head, "Sort of… kind of…. Not all that well."

Harry put on a thoughtful pose for a moment before snapping his fingers as an idea struck him, "Let me contact Sirius. He's from an old pureblood family; he's bound to know something about formal dances. A ball _is_ a formal dance right?"

"Usually. I can't picture McGonagall letting us 'get wild.'"

"True. Ooh, before I contact Sirius I ought to check with Luna to see if she has the appropriate music to learn how to dance to."

* * *

It turned out that Luna did have the appropriate music for just about every dance style in existence. She was rather curious as to why Harry and Hermione wanted to learn how to dance and when it was explained to her, she got wide-eyed and gave a little squeal. In response to that squeal, Nellie hopped over to her new mama and nuzzled her hands for reassurance. The four of them disappeared from view for a couple of moments until Luna calmed the little creature.

Later in the Gryffindor Common Room, Luna was lying on the couch with Nellie resting on her chest while she was reading her Charms textbook. Neville approached her and asked her if he could have her full attention. She closed her book and maneuvered Nellie to her side as she sat up.

Neville squared his shoulders and took a deep breath before asking, "Luna, with the upcoming ball I find myself in need of a dance partner. Would you be willing to be my date to the ball?"

Luna gave him one of her best smiles and said just one word, "Yes."

His shoulders slumped as though relieved and he gave her a nervous smile back.

"What made you think that I would've ever said no? You've done so much for me; I enjoy your company and conversations. There was never a possibility that I would've said no."

Neville just shrugged one shoulder, "There was the possibility that someone else could've asked you before I could."

Angelina Johnson happened to overhear part of the conversation and leaned over to put in her two Knuts, "Neville, everyone here in the castle pretty much thinks that the two of you are already boyfriend and girlfriend even if you two don't."

" _What?"_ Neville yelped, "Really?"

Angelina nodded back, "Yup, I'm surprised that you've never noticed before. I wouldn't be shocked to hear people referring to you both as Mister and Missus Longbottom."

Luna giggled while Neville sat there with his mouth hanging open. She reached over and closed his mouth for him. He gave a start and just blinked owlishly for a moment before turning back to his date.

"Well, Luna would you like to make it official? Would you like to announce to the school that you are not only my date to the ball but also my girlfriend?"

Luna made a show of tapping her finger to her chin in appearance of thinking the matter through before giving an amused snort and tackling him in a hug and a light kiss on the cheek. Angelina just laughed at the show while Nellie nuzzled for reassurance.

* * *

_**In the Department of Magical Law Enforcement Interrogation Room One…** _

If magicals had knowledge of muggle weaponry or at the very least understood the metaphors that could be applied to certain parts of muggle weaponry, Delores Umbridge would definitely be in full understanding. She was sweating bullets…

The day had started normally for her; she had arrived at work using her personal Floo only to find her office on lockdown, two Senior Aurors waiting for her. Without a word, they disarmed and silenced her, slapped a pair of magic-inhibiting cuffs on her wrists and hauled her down to the interrogation room.

Amelia walked in with a couple of file folders and gave Delores a predatory grin that was usually on Delores' face.

"Thank you for joining us today Madam Umbridge. Would you like a glass of water or tea before getting started?"

"Why have you done this to me?" Delores began to rant, "I'll have your job for this utter disrespect towards me!"

"I think we will have that tea anyways, no need to start things off on the wrong foot," Amelia calmly replied.

A junior Auror entered the room a moment later with two cups of tea and a plate of scones. Amelia picked up her cup and took a sip, nodding that it was just right. Wary but still in need of her morning cup of tea, Delores mimicked Amelia. Once the tea was consumed, Amelia leaned back in her chair and opened up the file.

"I have here an interesting report regarding the Dementor attack of the Hogwarts Express at the beginning of the month. Do you know anything about that attack?"

"No, I do not," Delores' hair immediately turned pink.

' _Gotcha,'_ thought Amelia.

"Really? Because according to this and the log for the Dementor Control Board clearly shows that you were not only in the control room but were also recorded as speaking to the clan leader," Amelia mused thoughtfully.

"I have no idea why that is. I was in my office the entire time that day." Her hair remained pink.

Amelia then asked her a couple of questions designed to change Delores' hair back to her normal color then asked a couple of hard hitting ones.

"What is it about the musical program that Hogwarts has that upsets you so much? I've spoken with Headmistress McGonagall and she's stated that test scores are up, aggression towards others is way down and everyone just seems to be happier."

Delores just glared at Amelia for a moment before responding, "It's muggle propaganda that the little brat is spreading around. I've listened to one of those so-called "songs" and it's nothing but utter perversion."

Amelia raised an eyebrow, "Really? Which one?"

"It was a band called 'LMFAO' and the song was 'Sexy and I know it.' Utter garbage and it could lead our precious pureblood children to have unhealthy ideas and behaviors. For the betterment of our great society, it and anything else that makes our nation look bad _must_ be crushed out of existence as well as any of those who would attempt to harm it," Delores said vehemently.

Amelia glanced over at Moody who was leaning against the wall. He just rolled his good eye and snorted in derision. She turned back to Delores and gave a small smirk.

"Delores, you truly are behind the times. Those songs are not being used for propaganda. They're being played because they're matched up to a person's personality. I have my own Song, as does Master Auror Moody here. I've even heard that you have your own Song and from what I've heard, it's as unpleasant as you are."

"Preposterous."

"So let me ask you another question, why did you order the attack on train?"

"I did nothing of the sort." Her hair went back to pink.

"Delores, I know that you are lying to me. The truth will set you free. Now let's begin again shall we? Why did you order the attack on the castle and the town of Hogsmeade?"

* * *

_**From Delores' point of view…** _

' _How could that Bones bitch know about all of the orders I placed for the first attack? There was no one else in the room and I destroyed the records!'_

She glanced down at her teacup, _'She couldn't have spiked my tea with Veritiserum; it's too well regulated and besides I'm a high ranking Ministry official and therefore exempt!'_

' _I must find out how she's bypassing all the established procedures for an interrogation of someone of my level!'_

' _I will find out who's been telling these lies about me and crush them!'_

' _How in Merlin's name did she find out about the second attack? I only placed that order last night after everyone left for the evening. I must have spies in my department.'_

' _There's no place in our proper pureblood society for that trash! Anything that excites the senses must be destroyed! Those Mudbloods and blood-traitors must be behind it all, especially that Lovegood oddity. I'm going to have to get creative in controlling her. It's obvious that the newspaper article was the wrong method. I will have to get subtler…'_

' _I must make sure that they don't find those quills in my office nor the secret room behind the statue on the end table…'_

' _Where is Phineas when I need him?'_

* * *

_**From behind a disillusioned window in the adjoining room…** _

Unspeakable Croaker was writing down everything that he was 'hearing' from Delores' mind. The secret room intrigued him as did those quills she mentioned, no doubt it would be something to get rid of her. _'Potter was right, this 'woman' is a special kind of insidious evil!'_

* * *

_**28 January 1993** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**A ball! Dancing with Neville! Squeee! I wish we could get all dressed up for this but it was a rather last minute decision of the Headmistress. On another topic, the Headmistress will be announcing the opening of the indoor pool and aerobics studio. I'll probably need to put my name down on a list; it's going to fill up fast.** _

_**Should I talk to Hermione and Harry about that sunroom they found and share it with everyone else?** _

* * *

Back at the school, Minerva was having a bit of a quandary. She knew she needed to hold the ball and soon but _when_? Valentine's Day was an obvious choice but to wait two whole weeks? She gathered the staff together and asked them for their opinions.

Severus was of the mind that it should be held as soon as possible so he didn't have to put up with the lovey-dovey nonsense for too long.

Pomona thought that holding on Valentine's Day would be utterly romantic but that it wasn't sending the right message. The ball was supposed to be a spur-of-the-moment sort of thing.

Filius agreed with Pomona on that, "I think you're reading too much into this Minerva. Like Severus said, just hold it on the weekend so they don't have to miss classes. Make it an all day event. Buffet style food, random music selection and no dress robe requirements. The students and staff can drift in and out as they wish."

The other teachers and staff thought Filius' solution was agreeable and interesting so by general consensus, the ball would be held that coming Saturday.

* * *

Saturday came and the Great Hall had been transformed. Gone were the usual House tables and in their place was an open for dancing. Smaller circular tables were setup for dining and charmed menus provided for food selection.

One of the older muggleborns had had the brilliant idea to go into Edinburgh and rent out a jukebox to automatically play the records without the need of an attendant. The jukebox was modified by Harry to work despite the magic interference using his patented rune array. There was even an area cordoned off and darkened for those who wanted to dance in the dark while wearing clothes saturated with the glow-in-the-dark dyes that Harry had developed last year.

Sirius Black had shown up and taught anyone who wished how to dance some of the more formal forms. The Waltz, Tango, Foxtrot, Viennese Waltz and the Quickstep were favorites to learn. Sirius had fun teaching and jokingly mentioned to Harry that maybe he ought to become a Professor of Wizarding Traditions and Culture. Harry turned around and agreed with him.

"I think that would be perfect, Sirius. Think about it, the purebloods get to see the traditions being upheld while the muggleborns and half bloods get to experience something new and to them, exciting. I know that Hermione would jump at the chance."

Sirius was shocked at what he thought was a joke could actually be a possibility.

"Well, it _would_ give me something to do and get me out of the house for a while. Hmm, I'll have to talk with Minerva about it."

* * *

Both Harry and Hermione along with Neville and Luna loved the dance lessons and the ball itself. It was a wonderful way to spend time with their respective partners. They would dance to the songs they wanted, have a snack, wander out or do something else then come back and continue dancing.

The ball had something for just about everyone. In addition to the glow-in-the-dark dancing and the ballroom styles, there was a section for those who preferred the faster, more modern rap and rock and roll genres.

Luna stopped in to see some of the performances by the students and spotted Vincent Crabbe up at the front rapping out LL Cool J's song 'Mama said knock you out!' while Pansy was in the rock and roll section grooving out to Fall Out Boy's 'Immortals.' The biggest shock was spotting Headmistress McGonagall dancing the Lindy with Severus Snape to a Cab Calloway's song, 'Jumping Jive.' Both had wide, happy smiles on their faces utterly oblivious that the students were watching in shock and awe.

Little did the students and staff know but the Board of Governors had stopped by unannounced and were watching the activities. The two more liberal members, Lord Edgewater and Madam Colombe turned to each other, grinned and hurried in to find out if they could add their Songs to the play lists. The others were stunned into silence by the sight of their pureblood children dancing, talking, eating and generally just having a great time with the other classes of blood status without a care in the world. Lord Malfoy was having a particularly difficult time seeing his son dancing the Tango with a First year Hufflepuff muggleborn girl. _'No! This is unbecoming of the Heir of the House of Malfoy!'_

At one point, Fawkes flamed in to a rather loud rendition of his Song. He came banking hard into the Great Hall through the main doors to the timing of the song. He weaved, dived and climbed through the rafters and chandeliers. He Sang his own Song in conjunction to the AC/DC group, adding a bit of Eternal Magics to the aerial acrobatics and boosting the joyous mood of those assembled. He spotted the look on Lord Malfoy's face and decided to soothe the man's ruffled pureblood 'feathers' by landing on his shoulder and quietly crooning a calming trill.

' _Be at peace Lord Malfoy. These children are merely having a good time and relaxing after the scare earlier this month. Those Dementors were ordered to attack and could've just as easily Kissed your son and heir.'_

' _Truly? Do you know who ordered that attack?'_

' _I do not but you might wish to speak with the Head of the DMLE. She will know and perhaps you can help.'_

' _She and I are always at odds. It would never work.'_

' _Never say never. You might just be surprised.'_

* * *

The Board finally got an audience with Minerva and the senior staff members later in the evening. Madam Colombe and Lord Edgewater were still humming to themselves some of the songs they heard and nodding in time with them. Minerva wiped her brow and motioned for the Chairman to begin the meeting.

"Headmistress, what possessed you to hold such an activity?" asked Lord Malfoy.

"After the attack on the Express and the most recent Vision that Miss Lovegood had of another attempt on the castle and the surrounding town, it was decided that the students needed a release of tensions and what better way than a ball?" Minerva explained.

"But the types of music and the styles of dance? Hardly suitable for children of that age."

Severus leaned in, "We made sure that there was no inappropriate styles of dancing or music. Everything was pre-arranged with Miss Lovegood and the staff. There were at least one adult member in each section to ensure safety."

Filius chimed in as well, "Lord Black was on hand to teach those who were interested the more traditional dances as well."

Lord Malfoy's eyebrows rose at that, "There was an attempt to instruct the proper etiquette to the students? How well did the muggleborns do?"

Minerva glanced at the others, "Shall we have a random selection of those who attended come here?" When no one objected, she called for a house-elf to go and ask for at least six muggleborn students who took part in Lord Black's class.

A few minutes later there was a knock at the door and the students were let in. There were three boys and three girls. The boys bowed and the girls curtsied gracefully and waited for further instructions.

Lord Malfoy got up and approached the students, eyeing them carefully and critically. He proceeded to ask specific questions about dress and comportment in various situations. He requested each of them to demonstrate the proper greetings and farewells for each level of station in society. He even quizzed them with an impromptu dance to see if they knew the steps and how to react if someone of a higher and lower station tried to cut in. Minerva provided the appropriate music for timing. After they were done, the students were dismissed and left the room.

"Well Lord Malfoy? Do you now see that there was nothing inappropriate being taught here nor was there any impropriety at the ball?"

Lord Malfoy took a deep breath and slowly released it in a sort of frustrated sigh, "Yes, I see that and frankly I'm impressed in spite of my personal problems with having Lord Black as a teacher."

Severus spoke up, "I'm impressed by how well he taught as well. There has been talk by some of the students that perhaps we should keep him on as a part-time professor to teach a Wizarding Traditions and Culture class."

Lord Malfoy leaned back in his seat, _'A Wizarding Traditions and Culture class? Now that would be interesting…'_

* * *

_**In Director Bones' office, Department of Magical Law Enforcement…** _

' _As bad as it could've gotten, this meeting wasn't a total nightmare'_ thought Amelia. She, Unspeakable Croaker and Alastor Moody were in conference to go over the results from Delores Umbridge's interrogation. Said Toad was currently languishing in one of the high security, no-star Ministry holding cells.

"So how bad was it in her mind, Croaker?" she inquired.

"Hmmph, I think the term you were searching for was 'maliciously medieval,'" he grunted, "I've had to interrogate some depraved animals disguised as humans in my time but she really takes the cake."

"Like what, for example?"

"She has plans in place and ready to go if she were to ever tire of being the second in command. Plans that would've given Voldemort nightmares. Concentration camps, 're-education' facilities, enslavement potions, sex slave rings for muggleborns or half bloods, you name it. If there was something that didn't fit her worldview, then it needed to be destroyed and those who knew of the possibility of said item needed to be destroyed as well. Then there were her plans for those she deems as 'dangerous half breeds." He shivered a bit at the memory.

Moody quietly snarled, "How is it that no one spotted her psychotic leanings before?"

Croaker shook his head sadly, "Because, as what many muggleborns have stated about the magical world, we are sadly way behind the times in terms of psychology, sociology, education, etc. If she were born or lived in the muggle world, she would've been identified earlier, practically in childhood as having these ideas and separated from the wider population, possibly even given medication."

Amelia leaned back in her chair, "So what do you recommend we do? Frankly, I'm all for taking Alastor up on his idea he had earlier about 'accidentally' shoving her through the Veil."

Croaker shrugged, "That's easy enough to do. She's already in a holding cell, moving her over could happen overnight. We wouldn't even have to wake her up."

Amelia grumbled for a moment, "Still… as much as I'd love to do that, she still needs a trial. If we were to just toss her through the Veil without one, it sets a dangerous precedent, one of which my Hufflepuff upbringing is already warring with me on."

A slow, twisted grin formed on Alastor's face, "Well, would you have a problem if the solution were to happen without you being present? You go up to the Atrium and have a cup of coffee in full view of other people? I believe it's called 'plausible deniability.'"

Amelia just made a face at that, "The problem with that is secrets are notoriously difficult to keep around here. How would it look then if that happened on my watch? No, I want everyone to know just how sick she is so we can use her testimony to get changes made."

Croaker was silent for a moment, "It would be nice to send a few of our Mind Healers to the muggle world to learn about their methodology and treatment practices for those with mental health issues. If we are going to use her as a poster child for what ails us then I agree, we should have a trial then we could wring some funding out of the Wizengamot."

"Ok, then are we all agreed? Set up a trial date, make it as public as possible and make her slosh with Veritiserum."

The two men nodded then rose from their seats; there was work to be done.


	6. Chapter 6

_**1 February 1993** _

**_Dear Diary;_ **

**_It's the Month of Love. I wonder if Neville has anything planned? I know I shouldn't get my hopes up but I can't help it._ **

* * *

January sledged over into February and Luna awoke to the sound of a loud thud and a cry of, "Ow! Luna! Nellie got loose again and I just tripped over someone's trunk!" Luna just groaned from the unexpected wake-up call and burrowed deeper into her blankets. _'Silly Nellie, oh what am I going to do with that fuzzy poppet?' she mused dreamily._

Luna rolled over to see Ginny Weasley rubbing her ankle and giving her a baleful glare before pointing to her Snorkack with an imperious finger.

"Deal with her. I thought you had a cage for her to be in?"

"Nellie? Come here, poppet. Where's mommy's little angel?" Luna called out soothingly. Nellie's head peeked over the edge of her bed; her nose wriggling at Luna's outstretched hand and the little Snorkack bounced up and snuggled into the blankets.

Later when Luna and her dorm mates got down to the Common Room, she was approached by one of the older girls.

"Luna? Any idea if McGonagall is going to hold a special Medley for Valentine's Day?"

Luna shrugged noncommittally, "No idea though that is a good one. If you have any suggestions for a play list, write them down and I'll take it to her."

As it turned out, McGonagall hadn't been planning anything for Valentine's Day but did allow for those who wanted, a small celebration could be held in one of the larger unoccupied classrooms on the main floor.

* * *

As was the norm, the Headmistress got up and began the introduction to February's Magical Musical Mystery Medley.

" **Good morning everyone! Welcome to February 1993's Magical Musical Mystery Medley! Before we begin, I'd like to announce the… I guess you could call it a 're-opening' of the Hogwarts' Aerobics Studio and Indoor Pool located on the First Floor to the right of the Great Library. Direction signs will be posted soon and sign-up sheets will be in each of your Common Rooms. Now, this month's staff and student selection are: Madam Poppy Pomfrey, Ginny Weasley, Padma Patil, Megan Jones and Daphne Greengrass! Let me start by saying that Madam Pomfrey's Song is actually a parody of another song. I've heard both and while the original is inspiring, Madam Pomfrey's is just perfect!"**

Poppy Pomfrey – Disney Frozen parody, 'I Don't Know.'

Ginny Weasley – Arthur de Lulli, 'Chopsticks.'

Padma Patil – Kat de Luna, 'Run the Show.'

Megan Jones – Beyonce, 'Single Ladies.'

Daphne Greengrass – Alicia Keys, 'Girl on Fire.'

Poppy still loved her song. She had shared it with her colleagues at Saint Mungo's and there was talk about making it required listening for the next generation of Healers. She sat there in her seat grooving out to the lyrics and just having an absolute wonderful time.

When it came time for Daphne's Song, most of the Slytherins laughed. It was in complete opposition to her demeanor as Daphne Greengrass had earned the reputation of being the 'Slytherin Ice Queen.' Her best friend Tracy gave her hand a squeeze and a playful bump on the shoulder before finally giving in and pulling the protesting girl to her feet for a bit of a dance. After a few more minutes of protesting, Daphne relented and got into the quickstep that Tracy was attempting to emulate.

* * *

Once all the songs had been played and everyone was settling in to have a quick bite before resuming classes, Luna got up and made her way up to the podium. She tapped the little bell to get everyone's attention.

**"Good morning everyone. I'm glad that you all enjoyed this month's Medley play list. As everyone is probably aware, Valentine's Day is only two short weeks away. As the Headmistress mentioned earlier, there will be a classroom set up for those who wish to join in on the festivities. I will be providing the music and if anyone has a choice of song they wish played, please write it down on the parchment provided on the bulletin board just outside the Great Hall. While I may not be able to get all of the ideas ready in time, I shall do my best. Thank you."**

* * *

Sirius Black sat on the edge of the desk in a classroom and once again wondered how he got roped into teaching once again. It had started as a joke; teaching Harry and Hermione how to dance for that impromptu gathering at the beginning of last month after the Dementor scare. Now though, he had been offered a part-time professorship to teach ' _Wizarding Etiquette and Culture_.' He figured that he ought to start simply by teaching how to understand the language of flowers.

"Ok everyone. From past experience and also general observations, no one here knows what it means when a certain type of flower is given or an arrangement of flowers. Case in point, I saw a Slytherin girl slap a Gryffindor boy when he gave her a handful of Marigolds and said I love you. They were both confused and the girl I imagine was a little miffed. Can anyone here tell me what that arrangement meant?"

A hand went up in the back of the class, "Does it mean 'I'm cheap and can't afford to buy you roses?'" The class laughed.

Sirius snorted, "No it doesn't mean that Miss Turpin. Anyone else?" When no one raised their hands he continued, "It meant 'Cruelty, grief, jealousy.' You can imagine how well that went over when coupled with the boy saying 'I love you.'"

Hermione piped up, "He probably thought they were just pretty and wanted a pretty girl to have them, right?"

Sirius nodded, "That's exactly what was supposed to happen. The boy in question is a muggleborn and had no knowledge of the language and codes that are associated with flowers. Keep in mind that when this language was codified it was during an era where it just wasn't done to blurt out your feelings for another. There were classes and castes of society that ensured that someone from a lower family couldn't just approach someone from a higher one and say, 'Hi, you're pretty! Wanna go out with me?'" The class giggled at the thought of that scenario.

So Sirius began outlining what the different types of flowers meant as well as combinations of flowers and the when and where it was appropriate to send or receive such gifts. He also went into what sort of gifts were appropriate when meeting the parents for the first time, what was the appropriate ritualistic sayings and things of that nature. He coordinated with Professor Sprout to visit the greenhouses to see what sorts of flowers were available to teach with.

* * *

_**14 February 1993** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**It's Valentine's Day! I know that at my age I shouldn't get too excited but with a boyfriend as wonderful as my Neville, I say to heck with that! I wonder what the others are doing for their special someone?** _

* * *

Valentine's Day. A day that could go one-way or another for a relationship depending upon how prepared you were. If you arrived at the Great Hall dressed up in clean and/or fancy clothes, had scheduled with the elves for a fancy lunch or special dinner and danced a bit then chances were you'd end up in heaven. The flip side on that was if you appeared at the Great Hall wearing grungy clothes bearing a handful of nearly dead, weedy flowers or nothing at all but a stammered 'Happy Valentine's Day' with the 'deer in headlights' look then your day was destined to be plunged to the depths of social Hell.

Fortunately for Neville, Gryffindor's resident Herbology expert, he was prepared. Despite her later protests that he had already given her the best present in the world, Luna was treated to the most romantic time of her young life. Neville had pulled out all the stops: he found out what her favorite foods were, her favorite songs and coordinated with her father to get a set of her paints and brushes sent to the castle so the two of them could spend the day creating beautiful art. That morning when she awoke, Luna had found a bouquet of white and red rosebuds mixed with jonquil and entwined with a viscaria. When put together it meant 'you are a vision of pure and lovely girlhood who loves me back. Will you dance with me?'

Harry in the meantime went a different route. He created a potion that would cause little bubbles of changing colors to float around Hermione and gently brush up against her cheeks before popping away. Each bubble was to represent the kisses he wished he could give her even though they were in public. That evening the two of them were holed up in an empty classroom being serenaded by Van Morrison singing 'Brown-Eyed Girl' while slowly dancing and quietly telling each other about their day and the sights of the others trying to catch the eye of the opposite gender.

He too had treated her with her favorite foods; this time was a basket of the foods she had when she had gone to France with her parents. Fresh French-made cheeses and other delicacies were in the basket he had ordered from the kitchens along with a non-alcoholic wine from a Potter-owned winery that Sirius had tipped him off to.

* * *

The Tuesday after Valentine's Day, Luna was in her Defense class idly listening to Professor Lupin instruct them on the proper method of dealing with household pests of a Class X nature while she was doodling in her notebook. A soft cough broke her reverie as Lupin smiled down at her.

"Am I that boring Miss Lovegood or has something else caught your fancy?"

Luna's cheeks went bright pink with embarrassment, "No sir, I'm sorry. It won't happen again."

"Oh no, Miss Lovegood. That answer just won't do, I've seen that look many times before and I sense that either a prank is about to be thought of or one is about to go down."

Luna mumbled a bit before letting out a sigh, "I was thinking of doing something that might get me in trouble."

"Oh? Problems with another student perhaps?"

Luna nodded, "Ron Weasley has been mouthing off about Neville and I. He keeps saying that Neville is robbing the cradle and dirtying the name of the House of Longbottom by going out with 'Loony' Lovegood."

The whole room was silent. The looks on the faces of the girls and some of the boys were so icy that it was a surprise that a glacier hadn't formed in the room. Ginny was, on the other hand, incensed by the words of her idiot brother.

"That idiotic, reject from the rubbish bin wanker! How DARE he say that! Luna, you let me deal with him. I'm going to tell Percy and the twins what he said and then we're going to have a little 'family meeting.'" She growled menacingly.

Remus held up his hand, "As amusing as that might be to watch Miss Weasley, there are more effective ways of dealing with your brother's ill-thought of words. First off, has Mr. Longbottom been told about Mr. Weasley's words?"

Luna shrugged, "I don't know, he's never said anything."

"Then I would recommend you inform him and let _him_ make the decision as to what to do next. Miss Weasley, if or when Mr. Longbottom takes any action, you are to keep your 'family meeting' civil. I don't want to hear of anything malicious being done to the boy." Remus explained.

"Yes professor," Ginny grumped.

Remus turned back to Luna, "I would recommend that you tell Mr. Longbottom what Mr. Weasley the youngest said and if he were of the proper mind, to send a strongly worded letter to the Weasley matriarch explaining in no uncertain terms just what has transpired and what the Noble and Most Ancient House of Longbottom intends to do if the youngest son of the Ancient House of Weasley isn't punished for such a social infraction… or words to that effect. I also recommend that Mr. Longbottom see Professor Black for proper wording in such letter if he needs help."

"Thank you professor, I'll do that."

* * *

Luna did end up telling Neville about what Ron Weasley had said. Neville had an indecipherable look on his face as he quietly got up and left the room they were in presumably to go and find the redheaded twit. She had no idea as to what Neville said or did to Ronald but when the youngest Weasley male was spotted later at dinner; he was twitchy, quiet and kept glancing around nervously.

Neville sat down on her other side and calmly pulled over the dishes he wanted and began to build his dinner.

"Neville? Is everything okay?" she inquired cautiously.

Neville stopped eating, swallowed and wiped his mouth with his napkin before turning to her, "Yes Luna. Everything has been dealt with. Weasley has agreed to never speak about or to you ever again unless it's an absolute emergency."

Luna glanced over to where the redhead was sitting, nervously trying to eat with shaking hands.

Hooking her thumb at the boy in question, she turned back to Neville and asked him what that was all about.

Neville gave her an evil grin, "I told him I would be asking Harry for a potion that would cause a person to become violently ill if their thoughts and words about another were malicious in intent."

"Did you? Did Harry give you such a potion?"

Neville leaned over and whispered in her ear, "There is no such potion but the Weasel doesn't know that." Her eyes widened and her mouth dropped open in surprised shock, "I did approach Professor Black about writing a formal letter to the Weasley parents threatening censure if they didn't control their youngest son. I imagine the school will get to witness a famous 'Molly Weasley Howler' tomorrow."

* * *

Sure enough, bright and early the next morning at breakfast the Weasley family owl, Errol came flapping his way down into the Great Hall; a red envelope tied to his leg. Errol dropped down and flopped over; exhausted by the journey, his leg stuck out towards Ron.

Ron gingerly untied and opened the letter. The explosion of noise engulfed the whole Hall.

"RONALD BILIUS WEASLEY! HOW DARE YOU INSINUATE THAT HEIR LONGBOTTOM IS A CRADLE ROBBER! YOUR FATHER AND I ARE ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTED WITH YOUR BEHAVIOR AND WORDS OF LATE! YOU ARE FAILING NEARLY ALL OF YOUR CLASSES AND BEHAVING LIKE A SPOILED BRAT! THIS IS NOT HOW WE RAISED YOU TO BE, BOY! IF WE FIND OUT THAT YOU ARE CAUSING ANY MORE TROUBLE, WE WILL BE REMOVING YOU FROM HOGWARTS AND BRINGING YOU STRAIGHT HOME! YOU ARE TO FORGET ANY PRIVILEGES YOU HAD THOUGHT YOU EARNED FOR THIS YEAR! I AM INSTRUCTING YOUR BROTHER PERCY TO CONFISCATE ALL OF YOUR BELONGINGS THAT DO NOT DIRECTLY RELATE TO YOUR SCHOOLWORK! IF YOU HAVE NOT BROUGHT YOUR GRADES UP TO AT LEAST AN 'ACCEPTABLE' LEVEL BY THE TIME OF MIDTERM EXAMS, YOU CAN FORGET ABOUT RETURNING FOR YOUR THIRD YEAR!"

The Howler then turned to the twins and said in a much calmer tone, "I'm instructing you two to keep an eye on him when Percy is unavailable. I can't believe that I'm writing this but should your brother Ronald misbehave, you have my permission to make him regret it. Just… don't kill him."

The looks on the twins' faces were first stunned surprise that quickly morphed into evil glee as they slowly turned to face their younger brother.

* * *

_**19 February 1993** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**Sigh… Neville is such a dreamboat! I'm eleven, why do I have these thoughts?** _

_**On a happier topic; I heard back from the printer of my Chocolate Snorkack cards and he said that the new presses are working at full tilt making as many as they can in hopes of getting the next batch ready in time for spring. Sales are up and strong as the packs are selling almost as fast as the storekeepers can put them up on the shelves!** _

_**I also learned something funny about Harry Potter!** _

* * *

Luna and Neville were in the Library; each studying for a test. Luna's was in Herbology while Neville's was for Charms. After nearly a half hour of silence marred only by the soft scratching of their quills, Luna leaned back and let out a quiet sigh.

"I don't know why I'm bothering with this. I don't need to learn this subject when I could just go to you Neville."

Neville didn't look up from his own work but still returned a brief smile, "What if I weren't around at the time and you needed to identify whatever plant it was that was doing something bad?"

"That's easy. Kill it with fire and run away screaming."

Neville just grunted in amusement.

"Seriously though, I need a break. I'm going to wander through the stacks and see what else I can find." Neville just gave a brief wave of his hand and went back to his studying.

Luna wandered through the aisles of books and the different sections. She passed Madam Pince the librarian, who shot her with a look of suspicion but didn't say anything. She came out near the back windows and spotted Mrs. Norris sunning herself on one of the ledges.

Carefully approaching she reached out and stroked the cat behind the ears. Mrs. Norris opened her eyes then closed them as she leaned into the slow and gentle petting. Luna gazed out the window while petting the cat and observed one of the school's Quidditch teams practicing out on the pitch. She briefly wondered what it would be like to be on a broom with Neville for a sunset ride, her arms wrapped around his waist, her cheek resting on his shoulder… she gave a brief shudder in surprise at her romantic thoughts. _'I'm eleven! Why am I thinking of these sort of things?!'_

She needed to talk with someone older that could help her understand what was going on with her. _'Hermione. She could help me.'_ She knew that the older girl would most likely be here in the library doing her own studying for the upcoming Charms test and whatever other reading she planned on doing. Now on a hunting trip, Luna stalked up and down the main passageways before finding her target three rows down from where she and Neville were studying.

"Hermione?" she called out quietly, "Could you help me with a bit of a problem?"

Hermione looked up from the text she was reading and smiled when she spotted Luna standing there nervously twisting her robes with her fingers.

"Sure, come here and sit down. What's the problem?"

Luna sat down and began to explain the thoughts and feelings that she had been having about Neville and some of the ideas that had been floating around in her mind ever since the boy in question had introduced himself from the first of September. She explained how it didn't seem right that she should be _having_ those thoughts and feelings since she was only eleven!

"Luna, it's perfectly natural that you should be feeling this way toward Neville. He's first and foremost your friend right?" Luna nodded, "Then as time went by, those feelings of friendship grew into a desire to be with him all the time to the point where the mere thought of not being with him is nauseating? That's normal. I had the same sort of thing happen when I met Harry. In a normal setting if this were a day school or if you and Neville lived in the same neighborhood, you'd see each other and then at the end of the day go to your respective homes to have a sort of 'cooling off' period. This school being a boarding school means that you don't have that luxury of cooling off."

"So what should I do about it? I don't want to break it off with him nor do I want to do anything that would make our relationship weird," Luna finished while looking down at her hands.

"My advice to you is to talk with Neville. Let him know what you are feeling and why. Tell him that you need to make sure that your relationship won't sour if the two of you become uncomfortable moving forward. Tell him that whatever happens, you wish to remain friends and that you want to be able to talk with him no matter what."

Luna thought about what Hermione said and nodded in acceptance, "Thank you Hermione. I appreciate your help."

There was a brief silence between the two girls before Hermione broke it with a sly smile and a low chuckle, "Want to hear a secret? It's about Harry…"

Luna smiled, leaned in and nodded, "Sure!"

"Harry apparently likes to pose without his shirt on in front of his mirror. He does this while hanging on a pull up bar that's anchored in his closet door. According to Susan Bones who heard it from Justin Finch-Fletchley, Harry likes to call himself 'Hunky Monkey." Luna giggled and quickly covered her mouth with her hands lest she let out a squeal of laughter.

" _Hunky Monkey?"_ she whisper-squealed. Hermione nodded with a huge grin.

"I know, right?"

* * *

Harry was walking down the hallway towards the library to meet up with Hermione to do a bit of studying for the upcoming Charms test. He spotted Luna leaving and as she glided past, he could've _sworn_ that she greeted him as 'Hunky Monkey.' He paused and turned back to watch her turn and disappear around the corner. His eyebrow rose in a moue of puzzlement before shaking it off and continuing to enter the library.

* * *

It was the last Monday of the month and the Board of Governors stopped by the school to see how things were going. Lord Malfoy was loath to admit it but secretly he was pleased with how well the Wizarding Etiquette and Culture class was progressing. He was getting regular reports from his son Draco as well as correspondence from his colleagues whose own children were telling them about the wonderful changes that were happening in the school thanks to the Music Annex as well as the new clubs that were popping up. There were informal clubs in the areas of Art, Photography, Singing, Dance (both formal and informal styles) and Instrumental music (both orchestral and band types). The newly rediscovered indoor pool and aerobics studio were also popular with the students and staff.

He had stopped by the Wizarding Examination Authority the prior week to see for himself that test scores had improved over the past year as a result of these new ideas and practices. It amazed him greatly, as he considered himself to be a traditionalist in that if it worked for his father and prior generation then why should things be changed? When he commented on this to the Head of the WEA Madam Griselda Marchbanks, she informed him that most of these informal clubs were in fact _taught_ _as a regular class_ prior to Dumbledore's reign as Headmaster.

"Are you saying that Dumbledore got rid of these clubs and classes? Why?" he asked shocked at the revelation.

"Any number of reasons really. We were always told that the number of students who wished to take said subjects was too low to make it feasible to keep them available. Looking back on it now, I think it was because the clubs were tweaking his views as to how things should be run. All of these "newfangled" ideas and practices and whatnot." Marchbanks replied.

"What do you mean?"

"I heard a rumor why he canceled the extra classes was because he wanted the successive generations to be less capable of critical thinking and rely upon him to make the big decisions. After he took the mantle of leadership, he wanted to drag the incoming muggleborns down to the level he was used to dealing with."

"In what way were the modern muggleborns different than those he grew up with?"

"The modern muggleborn all receive a primary school education regardless of their station in life. Those students were taught the non-magical versions of our classes at an earlier age and doing remarkably well with them. Mathematics, critical thinking, reading, writing skills, biology; all of those subjects have a magical equivalent. Dumbledore didn't like the fact that the muggleborns were more educated than the magically born. That's also why he pushed for the reforms in the Underage Magic Usage Laws, making it more difficult for them to practice their magic while at home. If they couldn't practice, they'd forget what they learned and eventually either be kicked out of the magical world for failing their classes or just accept that the magically born and raised were more skilled than they were."

"I can show you a class-offering list from back prior to when Dumbledore became Headmaster. I for one would love to see some of the more advanced classes come back to the school. Did you know that this school used to offer classes in Beginner Enchanting? Did you know that nearly a hundred years ago there were _four_ Potions professors teaching there? Two were for the younger years, one was for the NEWT students and one was a substitute as well as the Assistant Herbology Professor."

Lucius was shocked! The school had really taken a downturn when Dumbledore took over and tried to remodel the world in his image. He took the copy of the discussed material from Madam Marchbanks before heading home to read over what he had received. If the data were to prove correct, then maybe just maybe positive changes would be coming to Hogwarts.

* * *

At the Governors' Meeting, Lucius went over what he had learned from the data that Marchbanks had given him. He explained that it would behoove the people of Magical Britain to reinstate these classes and make the informal clubs more official with a dedicated staff member whose sole job it was to oversee and administer them.

He also suggested the idea that they form a primary school for magical students regardless of their station in life. He informed the others of the discussion he had with Madam Marchbanks regarding the education practices of the muggleborn and raised and pointed out the statistics that they were coming into their world better educated and finding themselves rather disappointed at the low quality of schooling Hogwarts was offering in return.

He acknowledged that the primary schoolchildren would not be able to use wands as they were still waiting for their magical cores to settle but there was nothing to stop them from learning about the classes that required a wand such as Beginning Latin, Basic Mathematics, Beginner Herbology and Beginning Potions.

"Just think about the cost savings it could generate if our children learned how to hold a quill properly, how to write a proper essay that make it easier for our professors to be able to read and grade or how to handle potion equipment and ingredients. I know for a fact that Professor Snape would be thrilled if the new First years knew how to handle a knife without getting injured or how to set a fire properly."

The Board members were murmuring in approval of this proposal and would discuss it further.

* * *

Minerva was impressed by the turnaround in Lord Malfoy's attitude. When Dumbledore had been in charge, Lord Malfoy was constantly on the attack trying to get the man discredited or removed from his position, even going so far as to suggest that certain classes should be removed or restructured to give more opportunity to the purebloods. She wondered what had happened to change the man's mind but she also wasn't willing to look a gift hippogryph in the mouth.

Minerva looked around and wondered if perhaps she could get something restarted that Dumbledore had opposed last year.

"I have something I'd like to bring up to the Board for their consideration. Last year a number of muggleborn and raised students demonstrated some technologies and devices that could potentially make learner easier and more effective, not to mention cheaper. I have with me a memory of that event so you could all witness it yourselves."

She tipped the vial into the Pensieve and motioned for the Governors to place a finger within the bowl. Once that happened, she tapped a runic array and their eyes glazed over as they began to witness the demonstration from last year. The memory only took about fifteen minutes to run through and when the Governors came out of their trance, they shook their heads as they returned to their seats.

"Astounding! The ability to turn night into day! That telescope is far and beyond what we currently have in Diagon Alley!" were just some of the excited murmurings she heard.

"My Lords and Ladies if I may, a couple of our students currently utilize this method of lighting in their dorm rooms to great effect. If you would allow, I say we should go visit them to see these devices in action."

* * *

The motion was approved and so the group left the meeting room and headed towards Gryffindor Tower. Once inside, Minerva spotted Neville sitting on the couch with a goofy expression on his face, as Luna was perched on his lap while running her fingers through his hair.

"Mr. Longbottom? Mr. Longbottom!" Neville was poked and looked up to where Minerva and the Governors were standing.

"Y-Yes Headmistress?"

"If you're quite through there, the Governors and I would like to see the new lamp you had received back in December?" Minerva replied with a twitch of her lips.

Neville led the group upstairs to the Second Year boy's dorms and gestured to the lamp sitting on the desk. He explained how it worked even though it was of muggle manufacture.

"Ordinarily it would require plugging into a wall socket which is connected to a power grid provided by whatever municipality. To turn it on, I press this red button and the light comes on. I'm able to get this lamp to operate because of a proprietary runic cluster developed by Harry Potter which takes ambient magical energy and converts it into the power necessary to illuminate the light bulb." He pressed the button and the light turned on. The Governors were impressed by how bright it was without being too harsh and how easy it was to read despite the darkness in the rest of the room.

"Doesn't this modification interfere with the Statute of Secrecy?" asked one Governor.

"No. To any muggle it would look like a manufacturer's mark. The lamp comes with the original power cord still attached so if any muggle were to see it worked without being plugged in, they would assume it was operating off of batteries."

"What are bat-trees?"

"Bat-ter-ies. They are small cylindrical containers that produce electricity through chemical means."

Minerva then asked the Governors to think about the possibilities in which Muggle Studies could be improved by employing the parents of the muggleborns.

"Neville here spent the Christmas holidays with Harry Potter and his girlfriend Hermione Granger at her home in muggle London. That he was only there for just a week and can now discuss the finer points of how muggle technology works is a testament of why the Muggle Studies class is in desperate need of improvement. I have been told that the textbooks are at _minimum_ fifty years out of date."

The Governors now had even more to think about before their next meeting.

* * *

**Director Bones' office, Ministry for Magic**

Amelia Bones was sitting in her chair at her desk seriously considering running to the infirmary for an anti-nausea potion. The information and artifacts that had been found in the secret room in Umbridge's office nearly caused her to lose her lunch and would probably cause her nightmares for the next several weeks. _'Heck, maybe I should get an Obliviation done after the trial. The things I've seen and read…'_

Stacked on her desk and around the office were boxes of books, reports, descriptions and plans for the sick and depraved predations of Delores Umbridge and those she considered 'like-minded people.' Mutilated bodies posed in disgusting parodies of real life and labeled 'art,' blueprints and cost sheets outlining the construction of 're-education camps,' books describing the worst of humanity and some by non-human authors.

All of it targeting the so-called 'lesser animals.' Muggleborns, half-breeds, half bloods, muggles… Amelia just wanted to exterminate Delores in the cruelest way and slowly.

There was a soft knock on the door and when bid to enter, Croaker came striding into the room carrying what looked like _another_ report.

"Croaker please, not another one. I don't think my mind and my heart let alone my stomach can take another report of that vile… woman," she pleaded.

"This one's not a report on what the teams found on Umbridge but rather the medical and mental health reports from the team I sent out into the muggle world to find out how they deal with this sort of depravity." Croaker replied calmly.

"Is it a safe bet that the best way to deal with it is the same you use with a rabid animal?"

"Pretty close. Lots of technical jargon and procedures that would be incomprehensible to the average witch or wizard but what it boils down to is that criminals like Umbridge could have been identified from an early age if only we had the wherewithal to implement such things."

"Oh? How so? Give me a synopsis."

"Well let's see," he opened the folder and began rummaging through it before finding the page he was looking for, " _The callous and unemotional (CU) traits associated with psychopathy in adults can now be detected in toddlers and infants. Indications of psychopathic traits can be reliably observed in children as young as three, allowing children at risk of becoming antisocial adults to undergo treatment earlier. The research team essentially found that preschoolers that show impaired development of conscience are deficient in how they process emotions, similar to what we find in older adolescent and adult populations with the same problems."_

" _These children are poorer at recognizing other people's emotional expressions, and images depicting others in distress don't capture their attention like it does for typically developing children as young as age three. While the above description does show up in those who are afflicted with autism, it is when the child begins to harm others around it that truly identifies the budding psychopath."_

Amelia leaned back and absorbed what was read to her. It was patently clear to her that their society was ill-equipped to handle the level of depravity that Umbridge and others like her could, would and had sunk to. It seemed like even the muggles had determined that while early detection was possible, treatment seemed unlikely.

"I take it that the muggles have no cure for this affliction?"

Croaker shook his head sadly, "No, there's not. As far as their medicine and knowledge has progressed; they're pretty much in agreement with what you said earlier. Sometimes, you just have to put down the psychopath down. There is no cure for psychopathy. No pill can instill empathy, no vaccine can prevent murder in cold blood, and no amount of talk therapy can change an uncaring mind. For all intents and purposes, psychopaths are lost to the normal social world."

"Is there some sort of test that Saint Mungo's can administer to the toddlers of our world to see if there are any other potential time bombs just waiting to go off?" she asked.

Croaker nodded and pulled out another couple of sheets, "These here are copies of the ones that were listed in the report. I can have another set sent to the hospital after the trial is held."

"Please do. This is going to be a bigger shake up to our society than the demise of Voldemort and Dumbledore."


	7. Chapter 7

_**2 March 1993** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**It's amazing the changes that can happen when one thing is altered. Case in point is the Malfoy family. Before the music came to Hogwarts; Lord Malfoy was always trying to undercut the class offerings here and the financial stuff as well because he thought that the muggleborn and raised were destroying the traditions and practices of the magical world. Now I've heard through the student rumor mill is that he's changed his mind and is now pushing for reforms of a progressive nature… who'd have thought it?** _

_**Draco Malfoy has also confided in me that his parents have started listening to muggle music and after I had made a couple of suggestions, determined that their Songs were to be 'Smooth Criminal' by Michael Jackson for Lord Malfoy and 'Diamonds' by Rihanna for Lady Malfoy. I'm glad they like it…** _

_**My classes are going well, I think my favorite class would have to be Charms. Professor Flitwick is so funny and the material is easy enough to learn. Binns continues to be a drag. Hello Nap Time! I'm surprised that no one has thought about replacing him yet!** _

* * *

March's edition of the Magical Musical Medley took place as usual in the Great Hall. Minerva was a bit under the weather and so she asked Pomona to take her place. Minerva did 'attend' via one of the floating orbs that Harry had created last year.

Pomona stepped up to the podium and cast a _Sonorous_ Charm on herself, " **Welcome everyone to the March edition of the Magical Musical Medley. Headmistress McGonagall is unfortunately not feeling well though she's here with us in spirit and also via one of the** _ **Student Helpers**_ **that our own Mr. Harry Potter created last year. Ok, let's see… right, this month's teacher is Professor Lupin with his Song 'Hungry Like The Wolf' by Duran Duran. The students selected for this month are: Theo Nott of Slytherin, Morag McDougal of Ravenclaw, Justin Finch-Fletchley of Hufflepuff and Parvati Patil of Gryffindor! Let the music commence!"**

Before Pomona could step down, Professor Snape whispered in her ear briefly. Pomona's cheeks pinked in embarrassment before returning to the podium.

" **Oh! As Professor Snape has just reminded me, I'm supposed to announce which songs were chosen for the students. So for Theo Nott of Slytherin, his Song is 'Cool Kids' by Echosmith; for Morag McDougal of Ravenclaw, her Song is 'Touch the Sky' by Julie Fowlis; for Justin Finch-Fletchley of Hufflepuff, his Song is 'Can't Stop The Feeling' by Justin Timberlake; and finally for Parvati Patil of Gryffindor, her Song is 'Last Friday Night' by Katy Perry."**

With that the music commenced; Remus sat there in his chair with one hand over his face and the other trying to fend off the nudges and smirks given by Sirius who had stopped by to hear the Medley. He finally relented and put on a brave face to the assembled crowd, not knowing that no one really cared about his condition anymore. Pretty much everyone knew about it but they also knew about the muggle treatment that was far and above more effective than Wolfsbane.

Theo was enjoying his Song. He sometimes felt out of place when compared to some of the more popular students. His mother had said to him, every time he complained, that what was inside of him was the most important thing and that if the others wanted to prance around and burn bright to let them as they'd be the first to burn out while he was just getting started.

Morag's Song spoke to her inner Scot. It was a song of bravery and spirit; of flying free and unencumbered by societal pressures or what her parents wanted for her.

Justin had been to a Justin Timberlake concert before and was extremely happy to have a Song by him. His other favorite by the same singer was 'Suit and Tie.' His head was bobbing to the beat and melody before being asked to dance by Millie, which he happily accepted.

Parvati was pink with embarrassment over her Song. Lavender and the others were twigging her about the similarities between the party girl and her. Padma gave her a commiserating hug and told her not to worry about it. She reminded Parvati that Pansy Parkinson had gotten the song 'Shake your tail feathers' which was a LOT more embarrassing than this.

* * *

The new Quidditch season had recommenced and with it was Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff. The now requisite song for the Lions was 'We Will Rock You' by Queen while Hufflepuff really hadn't chosen a song to represent them. According to Harry was that the team _was_ leaning towards LMFAO's 'Sorry For Party Rocking' but it wasn't definitive.

In the end it didn't matter, Hufflepuff lost by ninety points.

* * *

_**In the Headmistress' office…** _

Minerva sat at her desk slogging away at all of the usual parchment work that accumulated on her desk. A record player was quietly playing a catchy tune from her childhood. She leaned back and rubbed her tired eyes before noticing the portraits of the former headmasters and headmistresses were leaving rather quickly.

"Armando? Is there a problem I should know about?"

Armando Dippet, the headmaster before Dumbledore turned back and replied, "The others and I are going to be holding a meeting for a while. This is something that normally happens during this time of year. It's nothing to worry about my dear."

"Very well then, enjoy your meeting," replied Minerva.

It was about an hour later when she noticed them all returning. What made the moment memorable was that each one was evidently _not_ happy about something.

"Did something happen at your meeting Armando?" Minerva inquired.

"As it turns out, yes something did happen and frankly, we're all rather peeved about it. Phineas Nigellus Black here violated his oath to the school. He was the one who informed Delores Umbridge about the new musical program that was started this year. He's been feeding her information about the events and types of songs being played."

Minerva became livid about that bit of news, "Where is he? As Headmistress, I demand the presence of Phineas Nigellus Black's portrait!" Phineas slunk into view seemingly unapologetic about what had transpired.

"Well? What do you have to say for yourself?" thundered Minerva, "What possible reason could you give for unleashing that nightmare of a person upon this school and her students?"

Phineas huffed, "The so-called 'music' is utterly disgraceful and unsuitable to the children. That noise is causing our proud purebloods to cavort around in an unseemly manner like animals. I saw the need to alert someone of like mind who would be capable of putting a stop to this nonsense and took it. I refuse to apologize for what I have done or for what has transpired."

Minerva's blood pressure nearly spiked as a result of that explanation. She looked around at the other portraits to see them all shaking their heads or muttering sulphurously under their breaths against Phineas. She decided that the only recourse was to lock down his portrait and to remove it from the wall. Once that was done, she called for a house-elf to take the portrait and put it somewhere in deep storage where no one would find it.

* * *

**VINDICATION!**

By Ambrose Hammer

_Owner and publisher of the weekly magazine The Quibbler, Xenophilius Lovegood (45) must be feeling like he's on top of the world after his daughter announced to him and to the rest of the world that the creature they've long sought after has been conclusively found and captured. His daughter, Miss Luna Lovegood (11) recently began printing what are called 'Chocolate Snorkack Cards.' Each card lists a particular animal ranging from Class X to Class XXXXX according to the Ministry guidelines and lists several key facts about known habitat, a picture of said creature and in full color. For the One of Kind cards; they feature creatures more commonly associated with cryptomagizoology such as the elusive Crumple-horned Snorkack, Heliopaths and the like. Each pack comes with a chocolate version of the Snorkack similar to the usual chocolate frog._

_Miss Lovegood stated that her boyfriend, Neville Longbottom (12) had been contacted by a friend of his, who had found the medium-sized creature which resembles a pale blue jackrabbit with tiny curled horns jutting up from its head. (Details of the animal can be found on Page 4.)_

' _I'm still in shock at the generosity of my wonderful boyfriend,'_ Miss Lovegood stated as she shyly smiled and held the hand of Mr. Longbottom who blushed, _'I'm also incredibly grateful to his friend who found the creature because of my Chocolate Snorkack Cards.'_

_These cards are available all major retailers in Diagon Alley and soon to be released in Hogsmeade this spring. Each pack sells for 1 Sickle and comes with four randomly selected cards and a handsome carrying case._

* * *

Luna was definitely feeling on top of the world. The morning edition of the _Daily Prophet_ was laid out in front of her and she just beamed happily at anyone who complimented her on the accomplishment. When asked where Nellie was, she replied that because she was such a shy creature Luna had to leave her in her room otherwise, the two of them would be invisible.

Students of all houses were coming up to her asking for her autograph on their favorite Snorkack card and asking what was in store for the next batch. She explained that all of the selection for printing was done randomly and that she had no control over what was going to be printed for that batch. She only handled quality control and information gathering.

Luna was in her Astronomy class looking up at the stars and marveling at the grandeur and the feeling of just how small she felt. The teacher politely coughed to get her attention and quietly told her to continue with her assignment. She quickly and thoroughly filled out the worksheet on the star alignments and constellations.

' _This would be a great place to come and snuggle with Neville when it gets warmer. Maybe in springtime?'_ she thought dreamily.

* * *

The next day, she found herself idly wandering through the greenhouse where they had their first date. She stopped to smell some pretty flowers and trailed her fingers lightly over the mossy rocks. She finally ended up sitting and relaxing on the warming bench connected to the Dragon Heater. She closed her eyes and began to slide into a Trance.

_Luna opened her eyes and found herself in a tranquil country setting, a dirt path leading away from her. To her left was a grove of trees, to her right was a pond with multi-colored fish jumping into the air. The air was warm and scented with the aroma of simple country life. A gentle breeze wafted its way over the land, rustling the leaves in the trees._

_She meandered along the path until she came across a small wooden shack with a bench swing hanging from the eaves. She approached and knocked on the door but there was no answer. Luna grasped the handle and opened the door; the inside was dark and foreboding. She entered and began to look around but jumped in shock when she heard a voice._

' _You should not be here. It's not safe.'_

" _Who's there? I mean you no harm," Luna replied._

' _It is not you with whom I'm afraid of.'_

" _Will you show yourself to me?" Luna politely asked._

A specter appeared in front of her. Tall, forbidding with an aristocratic bearing on his features.

' _You must leave this place. The secrets within are not for mere mortals to have.'_

" _I'm not looking for any secrets, I was merely walking along the path outside and discovered this shack. What is this place?"_

' _This is the birthplace of all of the unholy creatures with whom many fear. I am the guardian and its prisoner. I made a terrible mistake years ago and for my penance I must remain.'_

" _I'm sorry to hear that. Is there anything I can do to help ease your suffering?"_

The specter shook his head sadly.

' _There is nothing anyone can do. I alone must bear the consequences.'_

" _I'm still sorry to hear that. Does this place exist in the mortal world? Maybe I can send someone to help you there?"_

' _Long ago maybe but no longer. A fortress where the unholy reside now guards the island in which this shack lays. It is not for the gentle likes of you my dear.'_

Fear gripped Luna's heart. Dementors, it sounded like this specter was describing Dementors and the island fortress of Azkaban!

" _You're speaking of what are known as Dementors, aren't you?" Luna queried nervously._

The specter nodded his head morosely and floated over to where a table and chair stood, an old, rotting looking book lay on the table.

' _Within this book is all of the secrets to the creation of those unholy beasts. If you must send someone, send only the bravest and most crafty for the journey is wrought with extreme danger. Within these pages you will also find the only way to destroy them permanently.'_

" _You're the one who's been sending me the Visions, aren't you? Should I assume that the shack and the book lay within the center of the fortress or at least underneath?"_

The specter gave a small, sad smile for the first time.

' _That would be correct. The shack lies within the center of the Dementor's stronghold and breeding grounds. I wish you luck in your quest young miss. You're going to need it…'_

With that there was a flash of white light and Luna was pushed out of her Trance. She blinked her eyes in the harsh light to see Madam Pomfrey standing over her and Neville worriedly holding her hand.

"Miss Lovegood? Can you hear me?" asked Poppy.

Luna nodded her head and tried to speak but found that her voice was scratchy and weak. Neville helped her sip on a glass of cool water before she tried again.

"Wha- what happened? Why am I here?"

"You were brought here by Mr. Longbottom when he found you in the greenhouse and not responding to his touch or voice. Should I suspect that you were in a Trance?" Poppy explained.

Luna nodded then asked, "How long was I out for?"

Neville glanced up at Poppy who carefully told her that she had been unconscious for the past three days. Luna was stunned! Three days was a new record for her.

"Madam Pomfrey, I need a phial to hold a memory. I want to copy the Vision I had so I can send it to the Department of Mysteries. I think they're going to need to see it."

So Poppy retrieved a phial and assisted Luna in copying the memory of the Vision into it. Luna corked the bottle and labeled it with a warning to view under the strictest security. She tried to get out of bed but Madam Pomfrey firmly pushed her back.

"Miss Lovegood, I'm advising you to stay in this bed until I clear you. You may write your letter and either have Mr. Longbottom send it or wait until you've been given permission to leave. Now lay back!"

Luna just stuck out her lower lip in a pout but lay back onto the bed. Poppy pulled the covers back up and left to deal with other things. Luna turned to Neville who had dug into his bag and handed over the parchment and her favorite pen. She shyly smiled and thanked him.

* * *

_**16 March 1993** _

_**To: Director of the Department of Mysteries** _

_**From: Luna Lovegood, Gryffindor House, Hogwarts** _

_**Re: Information regarding Dementors. FOR YOUR EYES ONLY!** _

_**Dear Sir or Madam:** _

_**I recently had a Vision in which I met with the creator of the Dementors (see enclosed memory phial). In the Vision, he detailed where a certain book lay and the information that is contained within. It is rare that my Visions don't come to anything so I recommend you make haste to set up a mission to retrieve said book and use it to destroy the Dementors once and for all.** _

_**With regards,** _

_**Luna Lovegood** _

* * *

_**In the office of the Director of the Department of Mysteries…** _

Unspeakable Croaker leaned back in his chair after viewing the memory sent to him by Miss Lovegood. He pondered the possibility of a potential mission and what it would mean for the wider world if there truly were such a book that outlined how to deal with those monsters. At the very least, he decided to put together a research team to dig through the Archives and see if the records matched or came close to matching this memory. At any rate, perhaps it would be a good idea to cultivate Miss Lovegood in her education to eventually liaison with the DoM after she graduated.

* * *

It was the last weekend of March and Luna decided that she would finally take a chance to use the new indoor pool that had been refurbished. She drifted down to the changing room with her bathing suit and a towel. As she approached the door to the pool, she heard her name being called.

"Luna? Hey, Luna!"

She turned to see Harry rapidly approaching her; the look of consternation on his face.

"What's the matter, Harry?"

"Have you seen Neville? He and I were going to be going over some potion ingredient samples that his explorer friend shipped to him along with Nellie."

Luna thought for a moment before shaking her head, "No, I can't say that I've seen him recently. Maybe he's in the pool as well?" She gestured towards the hall.

Harry shrugged his shoulders, "Let's take a peek."

Sure enough, they found Neville floating on one of the inflatable lounge chairs in the shallow end of the pool that had been designated for the non-swimmers. Neville glanced up at their approach and the look of puzzlement at seeing Harry dissolved into a sheepish look of apology.

"Sorry, Harry. I guess I lost track of time. Let me just get out and changed and we can get started on the ingredients."

Luna in the meantime doffed her towel onto one of the chairs lining the patio area and dove into the pool and started lazily swimming back and forth along the lanes. She kept her eye on Neville as he climbed out of the pool, water streaming down from his body. She shook herself before any illicit thoughts could further float through her mind. ' _Get a grip, Luna! You're eleven!'_

* * *

_**1 April 1993** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**Easter is approaching and Hermione has invited Neville and I to join her and Harry for a day at the London Zoo and the Royal Arboretum and Conservatory. I have no idea what's there other than that Hermione's described it as the one place where I would fit in if I decide to further my education in animal care (as if I wouldn't!)** _

_**I heard back from Director Bones that the trial for Delores Umbridge would be taking place at the beginning of May. I hope she goes away for a long time!** _

_**Oh yeah, before I forget, today's is Fred and George's birthday. I hope they enjoy my little prank…** _

* * *

George Weasley opened his eyes bright and early on the first of April. Today he and his twin were fifteen years old. He lay in bed not really understanding why the blanket was especially tight or why his hair seemed to be floating in front of his eyes and the room slowly spinning. When his focus sharpened he found himself floating high above the floor trapped in his bed. He heard laughter coming from below and tried to shift enough to be able to see beneath him.

What he found was everyone in Gryffindor Tower pointing up at him. Some were chuckling, some were agog with amazement. The Seventh year Prefect slowly shook his head in bemusement before heading out to find Professor Lupin.

"Wha- what happened? Someone get me down!" George shouted.

Professor Lupin finally came in and slowed to a halt as he stared at the spinning, floating bed that entrapped George. He shook his head to dispel the surprise then pulled out his wand and tried to cancel the spell but found he couldn't.

Quirking an eyebrow Remus mused, "Interesting. If not a spell or charm then it's must be a rune cluster. Anyone have a broom handy?"

One of the second years came running back a few minutes later with her broom and flew up to George who was already starting to turn a bit green from the spinning. She carefully examined the bed frame and discovered a rune cluster that was dimly glowing.

"I found it professor! What should I do now?" she exclaimed.

"I'm going to capture it with my own spell and when I tell you, I want you to take your wand and use a gentle cutting hex to interrupt the cluster. Ready? Now."

With the cluster interrupted, the bed began sinking towards the floor until it landed with a bit of a thump. George was released from the blankets, gave everyone a pained grin before racing upstairs towards the bathroom.

* * *

Neville was practically in stitches from laughing so hard at George's birthday predicament. He glanced over at Luna who was merely standing there with a satisfied smirk on her face.

"Luna?" he whispered, "Did _you_ pull that prank on George?"

Luna didn't reply but the merriment in her eyes gave him the answer all the same.

Neville coughed as he tried to recover from another bout of laughter, "So what happened to Fred?"

* * *

Fred Weasley woke to the sounds of giggling laughter. He cracked one eye open before both flew open in shock! He was lying in his bed in the middle of the Slytherin Common Room and clutching a pink teddy bear! His sheets were covered with little pink and red hearts; his blanket portrayed a dancing unicorn and his pillow was shaped like a fluffy cloud. To make matters worse, he was wearing a set of cowboy feetie pajamas!

The assembled crowd of Slytherins burst out laughing at the sight of one half of the legendary Weasley Twins in his ridiculous getup. Fred even heard Draco Malfoy calling out, "Oh my big, brave Gryffindor!" to general laughter and light applause. He jumped out of bed and whirled around frantically trying to find the exit before one of the kinder hearts pointed him in the right direction.

As he raced out of the Common Room, his exit was further embarrassing as the bottom flap to his pajamas fell open to the screams of delight of the girls.

* * *

When Luna and the rest of the Gryffindors got down to the Great Hall for breakfast, nearly the entire school had already heard the rumors that someone had pranked the Weasley Twins and what the pranks had been. When the twins arrived at the table, the assembled crowd applauded with a few cheers and good-natured jeers. They grimly smiled back and waved.

Luna sat there with a smug grin as she ate her morning porridge. Hermione sat down across from her with a raised eyebrow and a calculating look.

"You seem to be unusually smug about something. What did you do?"

Luna leaned in and whispered, "I pranked the Twins."

Hermione reared back in shock; her mouth dropped open, her eyes wide, "No! _You?_ What? How? Tell me everything!"

Luna just calmly shook her head and whispered that this was neither the time nor place as there were too many people around.

"How about we meet in the Sunroom you found at lunchtime?" Hermione agreed to that.

Later when they met up, Luna explained how she got the help of the castle elves to move the twins into position and engraved the rune cluster into George's bed. When Hermione inquired how she was able to enlist the elves, Luna explained that all it took was a simple explanation. Apparently the elves wanted a bit of payback to the Twins as well…

* * *

The April Magical Musical Medley was upon the school and as usual everyone gathered to hear the selection of music.

" **Good morning everyone and I can see you all are terribly excited to hear this month's selection! So without further ado…"**

**Teacher:**

Argus Filch – Louie Armstrong, "Mack the Knife"

**Students:**

Orla Quirke – Rihanna, "Rude Boy"

Jimmy Peakes – The Louisiana Gator Boys, "How Blue Can You Get?"

Cormac McLaggen – Britney Spears, "Womanizer"

Lee Jordan – Benny Goodman, "Sing, Sing, Sing"

When Orla's Song began playing, at first she was shocked. She came from a rather simple folk with simple tastes but this song… it electrified her senses and urged her to dance and move to the beat in a rather suggestive way.

Jimmy was happy with his Song. He had never heard of Blues but figured that maybe the next time he was at the Music Annex to he ought to look into this genre further. It had a sort of charm that just… flowed.

The older girls of Hogwarts thoroughly agreed that this song was practically written for McLaggen. The creepy twerp practically bounced from girl to girl, his approach was horrendous and his attitude was that they should be swooning around him because he deigned to show some interest. Any conversation held, the topic was all about him and his exploits or the people he knew.

Lee's Song tied in nicely with the Weasley Twins' song. It was jazzy, loud and fast paced.

* * *

Easter was upon them and Luna was traveling with Harry, Hermione and Neville and the Granger parents to the London Zoo. She was still mesmerized by the sights that passed by the window even though she had been in this area before. After parking and paying for their entrance, they gathered in the Visitor's Center to review the maps and schedule a meeting time for lunch.

Luna was in seventh heaven! There were all sorts of animals that she had either never heard or seen before but also animals that she had only read about! There were lions, tigers, birds, snakes and lizards! Her head was spinning as much as it had when they visited Harrod's.

"Neville! Look! They have an Atlantean Micro Dragon!" she squealed in joy as she rushed ahead.

Neville read the information sign and shook his head in exasperation, "Luna, it says that this is the Komodo dragon. It's a muggle lizard."

* * *

Harry and Hermione were in the Reptile House when the Keeper spotted him.

"Mr. Potter! Hey, been a long time."

Harry smiled back, "Hello sir. Yes, I was accepted to a boarding school in Scotland. I'm just visiting with my friends for the Easter holiday. Is that snake still here?"

The Keeper nodded, "Yep, she's still here. C'mon, I'll show you."

The two kids were escorted over to an enclosure that held a large black snake. The snake lifted her head as the lid was taken off. The Keeper motioned to Harry to start.

**~Greetings my dear, it's been a long time. ~**

_**~Speaker! It has been a long time. Where have you been? ~** _

**~ I've been attending a school up north. I would like you to meet my mate. Her name is Hermione. ~**

The snake introduced herself while Harry translated. Hermione was fascinated by the dual facts that she was having a conversation with a snake and that Harry was able to speak the snake's language. After they bid the snake and the Keeper goodbye, she turned to Harry.

"How long have you known that you're a Parselmouth?"

Harry shrugged, "For a few years now. I was in Miss Honeybloom's backyard the first time. I had an interesting conversation with a garden snake that was sunning itself on a rock about the life that surrounded the pond.

* * *

They met up for lunch and the adults got to listen to the excited chatter from Luna as she went through her discoveries.

"I never thought I'd be able to _touch_ a lion! It was SOOO cute! The fur is kind of stiff and coarse but amazing! Then there was the Atlantean Micro Dragon which for some reason was mislabeled as a Komodo lizard…"

Emma smiled indulgently at Luna's enthusiasm, "So I take it that you're happy to see some of the animals _you_ thought were imaginary or undiscovered, are in fact real?"

Luna nodded her head happily, "Yes! I even saw a creature that I would've thought to be impossible if someone had just described it to me. It's an Australian creature known as a platypus. Such a strange creature, I'm definitely going to put in the pile for the new batch of Chocolate Snorkack cards. Hmmm, should it be under Class X or One of a Kind?"

The others chuckled amusedly at her predicament.

* * *

The next place they visited was the Royal Arboretum and Conservatory in London. The look on Neville's face as they meandered through the different locales and environments caused Harry and the others to giggle. Everywhere he looked, he saw plants and descriptive tags similar to the information contained within a Chocolate Snorkack card. At one point during a tour of the Amazon rainforest, he paused and kind of gazed at Luna.

"Luna? I think you're really onto something with your card collection. From what I've observed and learned today, I'm thinking that maybe I ought to do something similar but with plants."

* * *

On the train ride back, Luna was curled up next to Neville and reading a book on becoming a veterinarian. She couldn't believe that there was a career tailor-made for people like her! Yes, it would require a lot of schooling once she was done with Hogwarts but in her mind it would be totally worth it! Imagine being able to straddle both worlds to explore and discover strange and new creatures while being able to take care of them in a controlled setting.

Neville was writing a list of plants, both magical and mundane, in a semblance of order for a card collection of his own. He had no idea if he wanted to include a chocolate plant or not but at this point was just fleshing out his idea. He too followed the Ministry guidelines for a Class X through XXXXX categorization. Hermione had looked over his shoulder at one point and suggested the idea that he tie in his cards with a note about which plant fit into the environment that cross-referenced Luna's cards.

* * *

_**In Amelia Bones' office in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement…** _

All the parchment work was completed and collated; all the forms filled out and sent off to their proper destinations. Everyone had been notified and prepped with additional Aurors on standby in case of trouble. It was time…


	8. Chapter 8

_**1 May 1993** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**This is the last month to do any sort of major revision before the end of year tests. I'm so nervous yet somewhat relieved that they are here. I can't believe how much has happened since September! I've made a bunch of friends and even gotten a boyfriend. I was gifted by said wonderful, huggable boyfriend with Nellie, my very own Crumple-horned Snorkack and I can't wait to begin discovering more about her to write up and publish.** _

_**I received word from Director Bones that Umbridge's trial will be taking place on Monday and that my attendance will be required. I've already informed Professor Lupin and Headmistress McGonagall.** _

* * *

**4 May 1993, Courtroom Ten, Ministry for Magic: The People v. Delores Umbridge**

The largest courtroom in the Ministry and yet it was still packed full. Every seat was taken and there were even some people parked on conjured stools on the main floor. From the moment, the case against Delores Umbridge hit the dockets; it quickly became a media frenzy.

Luna was requested to appear as the primary witness and aggrieved party. Accompanying her was Neville, Harry and Hermione. Harry was drawing his share of the media vultures for his role in the defeat of the Dark Lord. Hermione and Neville spoke briefly with a reporter who happened to be there and cover their respective latest articles to the trade journals, _Magizoology Monthly_ and _Herbology Today._

"Wow, it's crazy in here," exclaimed Neville as they headed towards their seats in the witness section of the stands, "I sure hope we can get through the testimonials quickly enough and get back to the castle." Luna quietly agreed.

Harry harrumphed, "Seeing all this makes me long for the 'Battle of the Two Idiots' from last year. At least there, when I put my foot down to quell the craziness, I know that it'll stop." The two Second years chuckled at the memories.

Minerva came up at that moment and chivvied them into their appropriate seats.

"Miss Lovegood? Director Bones told me that you would be called up first to give your testimony and also to verify your Visions. Once that is done and barring any cross-examination questions, you will be free to leave the Ministry and head back to the castle."

"Thank you Headmistress. I will want to stop by and say hello to my father first though." Minerva patted her hand and said that it would be no problem.

Finally, the Wizengamot walked into the courtroom and the reporters settled in their places. Director Bones stood up and approached the podium.

"Aurors, bring in the accused," she intoned.

The door from the holding cells opened and two burly Aurors escorted Delores into the courtroom. She had magic-inhibiting shackles on her wrists and ankles and it was apparent that she had been silenced if the noiseless ranting was any indication. She was forced to sit in the defendant's chair and a set of magical shackles rose up and bound her to the chair.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we are gathered today to witness the trial of Delores Umbridge. Madam Umbridge was arrested for a number of crimes including: illegal ownership of seven Blood Quills, witness tampering, falsification of documentation, outright destruction of Ministry property, misappropriation of Ministry funds and equipment, bribery, extortion, twice ordering the usage of Dementors upon an eleven year old pureblood girl, attempted Line Theft, and heading and supplying a muggleborn sex slave ring."

The last charge received the loudest of gasps and angry mutterings from the public.

She motioned with her wand to remove the Silencing charm, "Delores Umbridge, upon hearing those charges how do you plead?"

"YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO ME! I AM THE SENIOR UNDERSECRETARY FOR THE MINISTRY FOR MAGIC! I DON'T ANSWER TO YOU!" Umbridge ranted vehemently.

Amelia reapplied the Silencing charm, "Delores, let me make one thing very clear. You will either answer the questions given to you or we shall just lock you up until you're ready to do so. Now… how do you plead to the charges laid against you?" Once more the Silencing charm was removed.

"I plead not guilty!" Umbridge said in a huff.

Amelia called for Luna as the first witness to come up to the stand. Basic questions were asked to determine the validity of her Visions and her ability to See and Hear the Strings of magic itself. An Unspeakable from the Department of Mysteries was brought in to test Luna's abilities and declared her to be the genuine thing.

Luna was then asked to recount the Vision she had received first on the Hogwarts Express prior to the start of the new term.

"At first, all I had was a sensation of being cold and afraid. After I spoke with my friend Harry Potter who was sitting next to me and encouraged me to follow through with the warning sent to the Hogwarts staff, I concentrated on bringing the Vision back and it was almost like everything happy and warm was driven out of me, I could see my mother dying in my arms over and over again. I Heard screaming from the other passengers around me. There was this dead-looking shape that moved in close to me and then…nothing. I woke up at that moment."

Luna continued with, "The only other detail that I noticed when I concentrated on the Vision again was a sound. It sounded like a frog 'ribbiting' in the background. It almost sounded like the frog was talking to one of the Dementors. The Auror who questioned me at the time wondered out loud if instead of a frog, it might have been a toad. I was later told that Madam Umbridge resembled a toad not a frog."

Despite the seriousness of the event, everyone laughed out loud about the detail comparing Umbridge to a toad.

Luna also recounted what she Saw during the second Vision.

_She was standing on a low hill overlooking a valley of miniature buildings and a castle in the background. She could hear the faint sounds of music coming from the valley as well as laughter, joy and life._

_Just then there was the sound of the toad again. It was speaking to another, ordering an attack upon the castle and the surrounding town. The order was to attack with everything you have and leave no one alive._

_She watched as a cloak of darkness spread over the valley. Everywhere it touched, the music died and silence reigned. She screamed for help but there was no one around to hear her plea._

There were sounds of sniffling and quiet sobs from both galleries.

* * *

Once both sides got done with questioning and the cross-examination, Luna was excused from the stand. After her, Neville then Hermione and finally Harry who gave their testimonies as to what happened on the train and during the second Vision.

There was a short recess called and Luna took that time to visit with her father.

"How are you holding up pumpkin?" asked Xeno.

"I'm okay daddy. Headmistress McGonagall said that after I visit with you, the others and I are going to head back to the castle. I'll be glad when this whole thing is over with."

* * *

The trial reconvened and other witnesses were called forward and gave their testimony against Umbridge's predations. Finally, it was time to question the defendant.

When the Director called for the Veritiserum to be brought forth, both Delores and her solicitor started objecting. Both were shot down in their demands as the charges against her warranted the usage of the potion.

The Healer administering the potion had to have the Auror force Delores' mouth open but she managed to get the requisite three drops on Umbridge's tongue. After a moment, her eyes went glassy and all traces of resistance disappeared. The Healer turned to the Director and nodded for her to proceed.

"What is your name and blood status?"

"Delores Jane Umbridge, half blood." There were murmurs of surprise from both the media gallery and the Wizengamot stands.

"Why do you hate the muggleborn?"

"They are an infestation upon the magical world. They bring in new ideas and methods and strive to tear down the ideals that have sustained the magical world for untold centuries."

"Why did you order the two attacks on Miss Luna Lovegood?"

"She is a disgrace to the traditions and proper ideals for a pureblood family. If she had had proper training and breeding from the beginning, then none of this would've happened."

"Did you not care that the Dementors might have attacked and Kissed other pureblood children on the Express?"

"I did not care. I hate children in general. That a pureblooded child might have gotten Kissed was immaterial to me and just collateral damage." That answer right there was enough to condemn her in the eyes of all of the Dark families. One way or another, Delores saw her last sunrise that morning.

"Why do you disagree with the musical and arts program that was instituted at Hogwarts?" inquired the Chief Warlock.

"It is an affront to what should the proper entertainment to our society. It causes otherwise properly bred and raised purebloods to cavort around in unseemly ways and to jump around like animals. It is too loud and suggestive to be in any civilized society."

* * *

More questions followed and covered things that made nearly everyone want to vomit from the sheer cold-bloodedness and cruelty. Ideas and thoughts of what she wished to inflict upon those of muggle birth and of the half bloods terrified and sickened everyone present. The final nail in her proverbial coffin was her admittance to being a disciple of Gellert Grindlewald and later of Lord Voldemort.

Pensieve memories were played for the court showing the contents of the secret room in Umbridge's now former office as well as the secret dungeons in her home. Images of her trophies and Dark collection on full display and recounted. The Auror whose memory this was; was giving a running commentary as he was moving from one display to the next. Torture devices that wouldn't have been out of place in a medieval museum. The Iron Maiden, a stretching rack, a Weeping Widow's Chair; all apparently lovingly maintained and ready for its next victim.

Records of her dealings with the slave trade indicated that she had been supplying muggleborn children for years for the purpose of depraved experiments done to see how magic was "stolen" from the purebloods and "given" to these animals amongst other inhuman treatments. She also gave names of some of the people with whom she dealt with directly or had similar tastes. Director Bones put out a hurried call to have Walden MacNair in the Department of Magical Creatures arrested and taken to the holding cells.

Unspeakable Croaker gave his testimony of the psychological methodology and treatments that could've been available if Umbridge were part of the muggle world. He explained the research trip that had been undertaken and lamented that it was no wonder why so many muggleborn and raised ended up leaving the magical world when it was clearly apparent as to just how backwards and out of touch Britain was compared to more modern countries.

In the end, there could only be one verdict applied to this case. The guilty verdict came through in record time; both sides of the political spectrum were unabashedly in agreement with what sort of punishment was required. Delores Jane Umbridge was sentenced to be sent through the Veil of Death immediately after.

* * *

**Delores Umbridge Guilty of Horrendous Crimes!**

By Connie Samson

_Yesterday, Delores Umbridge (55) was tried and convicted of many horrendous crimes against the magical community. The former Senior Undersecretary to the Minister for Magic was found guilty of numerous charges, many of which details we at the Prophet cannot print for their heinous nature. The ones we can tell you about: illegal ownership of seven Blood Quills, witness tampering, falsification of documentation, outright destruction of Ministry property, misappropriation of Ministry funds and equipment, bribery, extortion were enough to see Madam Umbridge life in Azkaban prison. It was the guilty verdicts of the more heinous crimes that got her sent through the legendary Veil of Death._

_"It is good to see our Justice system in action," claims Lucius Malfoy (41), "I know that while many will rightly attest that my own views on the raising and care of our future generations is rather conservative, even I have my limits. Delores Umbridge not only crossed that line, she leapt right over it."_

_When this reporter asked Lord Malfoy what he had in mind for said future generations, he replied, "I'm putting forth a committee to go out into the non-magical world to investigate how they educate their children below the ages of eleven years. It has been made patently clear to me that if we demand high expectations of our children at Hogwarts then we should start their education earlier. It is my hope that within the next five years, we can overturn the corruption and degradation of our educational system that Dumbledore had allowed and encouraged to fester."_

_This reporter was invited to stop by Lord Malfoy's office later to see for herself the information that had already been assembled comparing non-magical and magical education statistics. What I found was disheartening and I for one hope that the Wizengamot will put forth the effort to fix the mistakes._

* * *

The May attendance of the Magical Musical Medley took place right after breakfast. The news of what happened to Umbridge on everyone's minds and tongues. A few knew of Luna's involvement and asked her some questions to find out more but were quietly asked by Professor Lupin to cease as the event was done, dealt with and to politely leave Luna alone.

" **Welcome to the May 1993 Magical Musical Medley! For the next two months because of the approaching finals, we will be combining the selections for the staff and students and playing them today. We will continue to play season appropriate music in the halls and ask that you limit the noise level in your Common Rooms to allow the others to study in peace.**

" **Without further ado, for the Month of May our selected Teacher is Madam Hooch and her Song is by AC/DC, 'Shoot to Thrill." For the Month of June our selected Teacher is Aurora Sinistra and her Song is by Train, 'Drops of Jupiter."**

**"For our May students, we have:**

**Oliver Wood - Ray Charles 'Georgia On My Mind'**

**Percy Weasley - Charlie XCX 'Break The Rules'**

**Flora Carrow - Chordettes 'Lollipop'**

**Hestia Carrow- Bobby Day 'Rocking Robin'"**

" **For our June students, we have:**

**Sally-Anne Perks- Chubby Checker 'The Twist'**

**Sally Roper - Foo Fighters 'The Pretenders'**

**Myrtle Malone - Weezer 'Buddy Holly'**

**Christine Chambers – Ray Charles 'Hit The Road Jack'"**

Oliver was thinking about the about the lyrics of his song. If you replaced the word 'Georgia' and replaced it with 'Quidditch' it would fit better.

Percy was getting chuckles and general ribbing for his song selection. If there were ever someone who would be _unlikely_ to break the rules, it would be him. It didn't matter though, he was happy.

The selections for the Carrow Twins were a surprise as both girls were the two front runners to challenge Daphne Greengrass for the title of 'Slytherin Ice Queen.' A tiny smile teased the edges of Hestia's mouth as she internally danced to her song. There were no external indications on her sister's face that she too was enjoying the bubblegum pop song.

* * *

_**1 June 1993** _

_**Dear Diary;** _

_**This will be the last entry for the school year. The final exams are upon us and I just won't have the time. I have to spend my free time studying and preparing for those tests. I have no doubt I'll pass...** _

_**Fawkes tells me that his nestlings are all flight worthy and ready to head out into the world to find those who are in need of their services. He's been really helpful this past year and I am forever grateful for all of his support and help in dealing with the highs and lows that has occurred.** _

_**Neville and I are planning to spend our summer vacation researching ways to integrate our magical and non-magical education for our respective cards and futures. I think he mentioned about trying to find a way to intern at the London Arboretum and Conservatory. I plan on trying to find something similar at the London Zoo.** _

_**On a separate note, Nellie is growing up big and strong. She still has a strong sense of shyness when in the presence of strangers but when she becomes used to them, she's rather inquisitive and snuggly. She has her favorites and those she's sort of wary of. It's kind of funny; she loves to cuddle and be pet by the Twins but avoids Ronald like the plague! It turns out that she even has a bit of a mischievous side; I observed her purposely dropping a book or something she can carrying in her mouth and lying in wait for Ronald to pass by her and she'll cause whatever is near her to turn invisible. The results are that Ronald will trip over seemingly nothing to the amusement of others. Nellie will then reappear and hop over to me with the look of 'innocence' on her cute face. Silly Snorkack….** _

* * *

_**On the shores of Azkaban Prison…** _

Unspeakable Croaker and a team of cursebreakers, combat medics and specialists in Necromancy and Ritualistic Magics stood at the base of the prison looking a bit daunted but grimly determined at the task and journey ahead them. They were about to undertake the most perilous mission of their lives. The lives and souls of the world depended upon them to descend into the depths of the Dementor's stronghold. They must not fail…

**Fin... maybe.**


End file.
